Based on the latest full-coverage high-resolu- tion multi-beam sounding data, the distribution of the linear sand ridges on the outer shelf of the East China Sea (ECS) is studied with quantitative statistical analysis. The study area can be divided into the northeastern part and the southwestern part. Sand ridges in the northeastern area, trending 116°N, show obvious linear character and shrink to the inner shelf. Sand ridges in the southwestern area, trending 120°N-146°N, tend to have net form. Sand ridges gradually become sand sheets in the center part of study area. Sand ridges are distributed landward to the isobath of 60m, distributed seaward to the water depth of 120 m in the northeast and 150 m in the southwest. Immature sand ridges are observed at water depth of 130-180 m in the southwestern depressions. The acoustic reflection properties of the internal high-angle inclined beddings of the sand ridges are analyzed based on the typical seismic profiles close to the research area. Lithological analysis and dating of 4 boreholes and 12 cores indicate that the widely distributed transgressive sand layer with high content of shell debris which was formed in the early-middle Holocene is the main composition of the linear sand ridges on the outer shelf of the ECS. The dominating factor in formation, developing and burying of the sand ridges is the variation of water depth caused by sea- level change and the rate of sediment supply. In 12400 aBP the cotidal lines of the M2 tidal component were closely perpendicular to the strike-directions of the sand ridges in the study area, and the tidal wave system during 12000-8000 aBP might play a key role in the formation of the linear sand ridges which are widely distributed on the outer shelf of the ECS.