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• A geometrically exact model is rendered to study the behavior of bi-stable laminate. • A model based on classical laminated-plate theory with Von-Karman strains is used. • Bi-stable laminates with very large displacements and large rotations are studied. • The effect of lateral length of square laminates on the statics behavior is studied. • The aspect ratio effect of rectangular laminates on the statics response is studied. The present study aimed to analyze the stable states and the snap-through forces of square and rectangular bi-stable composite laminates with [0 3 /90 3 stacking sequence and large to very large displacements and medium to large rotations. Also, the effect of lateral length and aspect ratio of these laminates on their stable states and snap-through forces were analyzed. For this purpose, a realistic geometric exact model of plate (GEMP) was developed based on continuum mechanics. In addition, the analysis was also performed with a commonly used model based on classical laminated‐plate theory (CLPT) with Von-Karman strains. FEM simulations were used to validate the results of these theoretical models. The static equations of the system were derived using the principle of virtual work and Rayleigh-Ritz method. Good consistency was observed between the results of the proposed GEMP and the FEM models, especially for laminates with very large displacements and large rotations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]