Abstract: The proved rate of conventional crude oil in Qintong sag of Subei Basin is more than 40%, and resource replacement is facing great challenges. Compared with other basins in China, Qintong sag is characterized as being fragmented, small, poor, and deep. The mud shale in Qintong sag has a low abundance of organic matter, in which the total organic carbon (TOC) content is generally lower than 1.5%. In recent years, by strengthening the basic geological research of accumulation, the main controlling factors of shale oil accumulation have been identified, including special organic maceral types, favorable lithofacies association, complex three-dimensional pore-fracture system, good preservation conditions and good transformability. The dynamic accumulation model of shale oil in Qintong sag of Subei Basin has been established, and the evaluation index of the sweet spot of continental shale oil with low TOC content has been established, which has laid a theoretical foundation for the exploration and development of shale oil. Through the deployment and implementation of risk exploration wells, Well SD1 obtained the highest test oil production of 50.9 t/d and the cumulative flowing oil production of 1.5×10⁴t, making a great breakthrough in the exploration of continental shale oil in Subei Basin, and showing a good prospect of shale oil exploration and development in Member 2 of Funing Formation. According to the resource evaluation results, the favorable area of shale oil in Member 2 of Funing Formation of Qintong sag is 420 km², and possess the resources of 2.95×10⁸t. The breakthrough of shale oil exploration in Qintong sag has changed the evaluation criteria of continental shale oil in China, and boosted the confidence of increasing reserves and production of shale oil in small continental basins of eastern China, which is of important theoretical and practical significance.