Taking soils mainly in the typical parks and public green belts in Puxi district of the central urban area of Shanghai as the study objects, soil basic physical properties, their correlation and the influences of different vegetation types on soil basic physical properties were analyzed. The results showed that soil texture was clayey, mainly as silty clay loam. Soil bulk density was high, 37.72% of soil samples exceeded the standard of “Planting Soil for Greening”. Soil porosity was poor, for instance, 82.46% of soil samples did not meet the standard requirements of non-capillary porosity, and total porosity of up to 95.61% of soil samples could not meet the normal growth of plants. Soil saturated hydraulic conductivity was low, up to 86.85% of soil samples was less than the standard requirement of 5 mm/h. Moreover, soil water-holding ability was poor. Except soil saturated hydraulic conductivity, the correlation between other soil physical properties were extremely significant (P<0.01). Soil physical properties of tree and brush were superior to those of grassland. It is proposed to increase the application of materials such as sands and organic matrix, reduce soil compaction and increase the proportions of tree and brush in green belts in order to improve soil physical properties and enhance the ecological function of urban green belts.