Abstract The contiguous continental shelf of the Bohai, Yellow and East China seas has a total area of about 0.75×10 6 km 2 and a width of over 600 km. The basement is tectonically stable and the accumulated thickness of Quaternary sediment is up to 500 m. During the post-glacial period, the epicontinental shelf received a large influx of fluvial sediments with complex fluvial–marine interactions. The river-dominated shelf sedimentation is characterized by two types of terrigenous sediment source-to-sink transport processes represented by the two mega-rivers, Changjiang (Yangtze River) and Huanghe (Yellow River), and the small mountainous rivers in Taiwan Island, in total contributing about 10% of the world's total river sediment load. Mud patches and belts, and tidal sand ridges were well developed on the shelf during the post-glacial period. These muds are generally interpreted as eddy sedimentation formed after the highest post-glacial transgression, while the tidal sand ridges with several formation stages developed under variable oceanic regimes. The changes in monsoon climate-induced river flux, sea level and oceanic circulation primarily controlled the stratigraphic framework and sedimentary facies on the shelf during the late Quaternary. Nevertheless, many aspects of sedimentary processes and river–sea interactions at different spatial and temporal scales require more investigation.