Shear wave velocity (V_s) serves as a critical parameter for evaluating soil mechanical properties. Direct measurement involves stringent technical requirements and substantial costs. Establishing a correlation between shear wave velocity (V_s) and cone penetration resistance (q_c) offers a cost-effective alternative with satisfactory accuracy, enabling rapid prediction of soil parameters. Accordingly, existing correlations between shear wave velocity (V_s) and cone penetration resistance (q_c) were compiled, and their characteristic patterns were analyzed. Based on this analysis, stratum-specific regression models were developed using borehole data from 12 Shanghai sites, and the newly derived models’ validity was evaluated through typical evaluation indicators. The results demonstrate that existing V_s- q_c correlations fail to reliably predict shear wave velocities in Shanghai soils and inadequately represent regional soil characteristics. V_s exhibits strong dependence on both q_c and burial depth H. The proposed regression model achieves superior prediction accuracy in predicting shear wave velocities V_s for soft soil, demonstrating superior applicability across varied soil conditions. This study provides a cost-effective and efficient solution for rapid prediction of shear wave velocity (V_s) and its engineering applications in soft soil.