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In this paper, a multivariable frequency-domain maximum likelihood estimator based on a modal model formulation is proposed. The proposed approach is mainly introduced to improve the accuracy of the modal parameters estimated by the poly-reference least squares complex frequency-domain (i.e. pLSCF) estimator and to have their confidence intervals as well. In that approach, a 3-step procedure is introduced to improve the estimates accuracy while taking the advantage of the very clear stabilization diagram of pLSCF estimator. The proposed approach has been optimized to reduce the computation time as well as the memory requirements. The algorithm is evaluated and compared with two other published algorithms by means of Monte-Carlo simulations.