The output feedback active disturbance rejection control of a valve-controlled cylinder electro-hydraulic servo system is investigated in this paper. First, a comprehensive nonlinear mathematical model that encompasses both matched and mismatched disturbances is formulated. Due to the fact that only position information can be measured, a linear Extended State Observer (ESO) is introduced to estimate unknown states and matched disturbances, while a dedicated disturbance observer is constructed to estimate mismatched disturbances. Different from the traditional observer results, the design of the disturbance observer used in this study is carried out under the constraint of output feedback. Furthermore, an output feedback nonlinear controller is proposed leveraging the aforementioned observers to achieve accurate trajectory tracking. To mitigate the inherent differential explosion problem of the traditional backstepping framework, a finite-time stable command filter is incorporated. Simultaneously, considering transient filtering errors, a set of error compensation signals are designed to counter their negative impact effectively. Theoretical analysis affirms that the proposed control strategy ensures the boundedness of all signals within the closed-loop system. Additionally, under the specific condition of only time-invariant disturbances in the system, the conclusion of asymptotic stability is established. Finally, the algorithm’s efficacy is validated through comparative experiments.