The levitation control in a linear magnetic-levitation (maglev) rail system is a subject of considerable scientific interest because of highly nonlinear and unstable. This study mainly focuses on the sequential developments of backstepping-based control systems including a backstepping control (BSC), an adaptive backstepping control (ABSC) and an adaptive dynamic surface control (ADSC) for the levitated positioning of the linear maglev rail system. The effectiveness of the proposed control schemes for the levitation control of a maglev system is verified by numerical simulations, and the superiority of the ADSC system is indicated in comparison with the BSC and ABSC systems