To provide a shift control method for an automatic transmission for performing shifting by coupling and releasing action of a friction element by hydraulic pressure, in which shift shock at the final stage of shifting is reduced or prevented to improve shift feeling, thereby contributing to the improvement of commodity worth of a vehicle.

The method includes a first stage of detecting the end point of a coasting interval from among upshift, a second stage of instantaneously reducing the hydraulic pressure to be provided to a coupling side friction element at the end point of the detected coasting interval, a third stage of increasing the reduced hydraulic pressure at a predetermined increasing rate until reaching a synchronous point, and a fourth stage of instantaneously increasing the hydraulic pressure when the synchronous point has been reached.