Several types of coplanar waveguide (CPW) resonator are analyzed by use of the field decay method based on the FDTD algorithm in this paper. Quality (Q) factors of a CPW resonator, including radiation Q, conductor Q, dielectric Q and unloaded Q, are investigated thoroughly. A new procedure to calculate conductor Q is proposed. Some CPW resonators are fabricated and measured in order to validate the analysis method. It is shown that radiation from a CPW resonator can be reduced by means of the stepped impedance technique. It is also seen that miniaturization of CPW resonators can be realized if the stepped impedance structure is adopted.