The Danxia landform region is a quintessential example of fragile ecosystems in southwest China. Vegetation in this region inputs nutrients into the soil through litterfall, fine roots, and other means, thereby altering soil nutrient availability and impacting microbial communities. However, there is currently a lack of clear understanding of the specific effects of different vegetation types on soil nutrients and microbial characteristics. This study selected four typical vegetation types in the Danxia landform area of Chishui, Guizhou Province-mixed coniferous broad-leaved forest, evergreen broad-leaved forest, Chinese fir forest and bamboo forest-as research objects. The aim was to explore the variation characteristics of soil carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) nutrients, and microbial biomass (MBC, MBN, and MBP) under different vegetation types, and to analyze the relationships among stoichiometric ratios, microbial quotients (qMBC, qMBN, qMBP), and stoichiometric imbalance. The results indicate that: (1) Soil SOC, N, and P nutrients exhibit significant surface accumulation in all four vegetation types, with bamboo forest having significantly higher SOC, TN and TP contents in 0—10 cm and 10—20 cm soil layers compared to the other three vegetation types. (2) In the 0—20 cm soil layer, the average C ∶ N ratios of the four vegetation types are 9.35—10.58, with no significant differences among them. The average C ∶ P ratios range from 36.55—55.60, with the highest value in evergreen broad-leaved forest. But the average N ∶ P ratios are relatively low ranging from 3.52 to 5.25, indicating that the growth of the four vegetation types is mainly limited by N. Additionally, the soil N ∶ P ratios in evergreen broad-leaved forest and Chinese fir forest are significantly higher than those in mixed coniferous broad-leaved forest and bamboo forest. (3) Within the 0—20 cm soil layer, the qMBC in Chinese fir forest soil is significantly lower than that of the other three vegetation types, while its qMBP value is relative higher. The qMBN in Chinese fir forest and bamboo forest is significantly higher than that in the other two vegetation types. (4) in terms of stoichiometric imbalances, in the 0—20 cm soil layer, the C ∶ N(IMB) and C ∶ P(IMB) in Chinese fir forest are significantly higher than those in other vegetation types. While the N ∶ P(IMB) in evergreen broad-leaved forest and Chinese fir forest is significantly higher than that in the other two vegetation types. (5) Two-way ANOVA further confirms that both vegetation type and soil layer have significant effects on soil carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus nutrients and microbial biomass. Redundancy analysis show that C ∶ N(IMB), C ∶ P(IMB), MBC ∶ MBN and MBN ∶ MBP have a greater impact on microbial quotients. Overall, among the four vegetation types, bamboo forest has higher nutrient enrichment capacities, while Chinese fir forest has the lowest qMBC and higher C ∶ N(IMB), C ∶ P(IMB), and N ∶ P(IMB), reflecting poorer soil quality conditions. Additionally, the growth of all four vegetation types is primarily limited by N, so attention should be paid to nitrogen supply in ecosystem management.