In our experiment, studies have found that the content of Zn is the highest in the filtered water and surface sediments of Taihu Lake, and Cd has the strongest ecological hazards on surface sediments. Therefore, in this paper, the adsorption and desorption characteristics of Cd2+ and Zn2+ on the surface sediments of Suzhou Bay Bridge East (marked as SES) of Taihu Lake were investigated by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) under the optimized experimental conditions. Adsorption kinetics results showed that the adsorption capacity of Cd2+ was similar to that of Zn2+, adsorption was a rapid process within 120 min, and when t≥120 min, the result was the opposite and the adsorption reached to dynamic balance. In addition, the adsorption of Cd2+ and Zn2+ were corresponding to the pseudo-second-order kinetics model. Adsorption thermodynamics experiments showed that the adsorption of Cd2+ on the sediments was in accordance with the Freundlich model, while the adsorption of Zn2+ on the sediments were conformed to the Langmuir model. The assay of desorption kinetics of Cd2+ and Zn2+ in sediments found, both of which were more in accordance with the Elovich equation and belonged to the heterogeneous diffusion. When the pH increased, the desorption of Cd2+ and Zn2+ in the sediments decreased gradually, and tended to stabiliz at pH=9. Combination with the adsorption-desorption characteristics of Cd2+ and Zn2+, the adsorption rates of Cd2+ and Zn2+ were much larger than desorption rates of Cd2+ and Zn2+, which was consistent with the results of our previous studies. This study revealed the mechanism of adsorption and desorption of Cd2+ and Zn2+ on surface sediments of Taihu Lake and the effect of different factors on the adsorption-desorption behavior. It is of great significance to study the distribution of heavy metals and the remediation of polluted water in the solid-liquid interface of Taihu Lake.