Abstract: In ocean engineering practice, laterally loaded piles are usually analyzed using the nonlinear Winkler foundation beam method, in which the soil-structure interaction is modelled by means of the p-y curve, but now the API/DNV rules are only valid for few soils and pile conditions, and the p-y hysteresis curve is not given under cyclic loading. A simplified bounding surface plastic shear stress-shear strain model for sandy soil under monotonic and cyclic loads is proposed, and a method is introduced for the establishment of p-y curves from the proposed model. Based on the scaling of stress and strain into compatible soil reaction p and pile deflection y respectively, the proposed method has good theoretical basis. According to the p-y curve of sand in the API rule, the API p-y hysteresis curve is established using the Masing rule and compared with the bounding surface plastic p-y curve, and the variation characteristics of secant stiffness and damping ratio with displacement amplitude are analyzed. Finally, the validity of the proposed p-y curve is verified by the model test results.