The invention relates to a genetic-algorithm-based quadrature phase coding waveform design method. The method comprises: step one, an initial sample signal is generated; step two, fitness of an initial sample is calculated; to be specific, fitness of each individual sequence is calculated by using an MPSR as a fitness function; the MPSR is compared with a design threshold, an algorithm is completed on the condition that the MPSR threshold is met and an individual number reaches a need, and otherwise, execution is carried out continuously; with an optimal reserving method, an individual with the highest fitness in the sample is reserved and is used for replacing an individual with the lowest fitness; pairwise matching is carried out on individuals in the sample randomly, matched parent individuals are replaced based on a certain crossover probability and recombination is carried out to generate new individuals; and on the basis of a certain mutation probability, a code value of a certain individual in the sample changes. Therefore, the formed signal has high correlation, high frequency resolution ratio, high Doppler tolerance, and good anti-reverberation capability. The method is suitable for an acoustic positioning system; and continuous and high-precision positioning is realized.