The purpose of this study is to investigate how the axial load in beams influences the relationships between the natural frequencies and the effects of shear deformation and rotary inertia. Four beam theories are considered in this study. Finite element equations of motion for the beams under a tensile load are formulated to allow the application of various axial loads as well as to impose any type of boundary conditions. The results demonstrate that the stiffening effect by a tensile load may not reduce the frequency error of the Euler beam theory, unlike the results reported in other studies.