The pile was supposed to be elastic and the plane-strain model was adopted to simulate the surrounding soil. By the means of Laplace transform and impedance function transfer method, the dynamic response of tapered pile was obtained. Then, by parametric method, the influence of pile and soil characteristics on the dynamic response of tapered pile was discussed. Meanwhile, the correctness of the theory was verified by model test. The results show that: 1）There is a critical pile diameter ratio at which the reflected signal from pile bottom is difficult to find, and the ratio increases as the pile grows； 2） Cone angle and pile length have a great influence on the dynamic response of tapered pile. However, in the case of small-diameter pile with a zero-diameter end, pile length doesn't have an obvious influence；3） Shear wave velocity of soil and vertical distribution of soil have a great influence on the dynamic response of tapered pile； 4） Good agreement is shown between experimental and theoretical results.