We examine the significance of the energy loss mechanisms active in electrostatic MEMS actuators. We find that the dominant loss mechanism changes depending on the actuator mode of operation. We find that the active mechanisms in the order of their significance are: fluid-structure interactions dominant for actuators operating in air, actuator-substrate interactions dominant for actuators in contact with a substrate under vacuum, and intrinsic loss mechanisms dominant for actuators in-flight under vacuum. Further, experimental results show that the quality factor of an electrostatic MEMS actuator drops drastically as the actuator first comes into line contact with a substrate. As the contact area expands along the actuator length, the quality factor increases. Measurements under 1 Torr vacuum show a three-fold increase in the quality factor as the contact area expands from a line to 30% of the actuator area. This increase in the quality factor is attributed to the drop in the contribution of friction forces into energy losses as contact expands and adhesion forces increase. © 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.