Effective soil layer thickness is a decisive indicator for evaluating soil health and productivity, and accurate depiction of the spatial distribution pattern of effective soil layer thickness and its response mechanism to land use change and surface matrix type is of great significance for the sustainable protection of soil resources. In this paper, we selected the black soil area in the eastern part of Inner Mongolia as the study area, and based on the surface matrix survey data and soil-landscape modeling, we carried out the digital mapping and spatial pattern analysis of effective soil layer thickness in this area, identified the main controlling factors of spatial variability of effective soil layer thickness through SHAP analysis, and ascertained the differential distribution pattern of effective soil layer thickness under different land use types and surface matrix zoning. The results showed that the regression model of effective soil thickness based on Cubist had good performance (R2=0.5,RMSE=43.8), and the generated spatial distribution map could accurately reveal its spatial pattern. SHAP analysis revealed that topographic and climatic factors were the main controlling factors determining the spatial variability of the effective soil thickness, which was specifically reflected in the fact that the high elevation areas within the same watershed were affected by the erosion, and the soil layer was thinner; while the monthly average soil thickness was lower than the monthly average soil thickness, and the monthly average soil thickness was lower than the monthly average soil thickness, which was lower than the monthly average soil thickness. The effect of mean monthly temperature extremes on the effective soil layer thickness was positive. Both surface substrate zoning and land use types have important constraints on the spatial characteristics of the effective soil layer thickness, with the overall soil layer thickness in the residual slope deposit area being greater than that in the slope floodplain and slope deposit areas, and the soil layer thickness in cropland being significantly lower than that in woodland and grassland due to soil disturbance by high-intensity cultivation. The mean values of effective soil layer thickness in different surface substrate zones were in the order of residual slope deposits>slope flood deposits>slope deposits. This paper provides a methodological reference for the spatial modeling and characterization of effective soil layer thickness, and the results of the study can provide a data basis for identifying the background conditions of regional natural resources and their response mechanisms to human interactions.