An optimal design method using a response surface method for dynamic characteristics of a washer is presented. The proposed method uses the design of experiment and a computer model is used for the experiment. The value of the cost function is estimated using a computer model for each case of the design variable variation. An orthogonal array is used to obtain best cases to be considered with minimum number of experimentation. Using these experimental values, optimal design is performed using a response surface method. The method used in this paper can be applied to any complicated mechanical systems that can be modelled and analyzed by a computer program. The method is applied to the design of dynamic characteristics of a washer.