Shvedova started the year at the Shenzhen Open.
Coming through qualifying, she lost in the first round to Anett Kontaveit.
In Sydney at the Apia International Sydney, Shvedova retired during her first round of qualifying match against Sesil Karatantcheva.
At the Australian Open, Shvedova won her first-round match over Tsvetana Pironkova.
In the second round, she lost to fifteenth seed Madison Keys.

Getting past qualifying at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Shvedova stunned seventh seed Roberta Vinci in the first round.
In the second round, she was defeated by eventual champion Sara Errani.
At the Qatar Total Open, Shvedova lost in the first round to Nao Hibino.
In Indian Wells at the BNP Paribas Open, Shvedova won her first two rounds over qualifier Kristýna Plíšková and eleventh seed Lucie Šafářová.
In the third round, she was defeated by qualifier Nicole Gibbs.
At the Miami Open, Shvedova lost in the final round of qualifying to Kristýna Plíšková.
In doubles, she and Tímea Babos reached the final where they lost to Bethanie Mattek-Sands/Lucie Šafářová.

Shvedova started her clay-court season at the Volvo Car Open.
She was defeated in the second round by fifth seed Sara Errani.
Playing in Madrid at the Mutua Madrid Open, Shvedova lost in the first round of qualifying to Mariana Duque Mariño.
At the Italian Open, Shvedova was defeated in the first round of qualifying by Ana Konjuh.
Shvedova played her final tournament before the French Open at Internationaux de Strasbourg.
She lost in the first round to lucky loser Virginie Razzano.
At the French Open, Shvedova was defeated in the first round by thirteenth seed and 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.

Shvedova began her grass-court season at the Ricoh Open.
She was defeated in the first round by third seed and eventual finalist Kristina Mladenovic.
However, in doubles, Shvedova and Oksana Kalashnikova won the title defeating Xenia Knoll/Aleksandra Krunić in the final.
Playing at the first edition of the Mallorca Open, Shvedova lost in the first round to Daniela Hantuchová.
At the Aegon International Eastbourne, Shvedova lost in the second round of qualifying to Alison Van Uytvanck.
Ranked ninety-six at the Wimbledon Championships, Shvedova reached the quarterfinals in singles for the first time in her career defeating Julia Görges, seventeenth seed Elina Svitolina, 2013 Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki, and twenty-eighth seed Lucie Šafářová.
In her quarterfinal match, she lost to eighth seed, five time Wimbledon Champion, and former world No.
1 Venus Williams.
In doubles, Shvedova and Tímea Babos reached the final upsetting top seeds Hingis/Mirza en route to the final.
In the final, Shvedova and Babos lost to the Williams sisters.
Due to her quarterfinals result in singles at Wimbledon, Shvedova's ranking improved from 96 to 49.

Seeded seventh at the Swedish Open, Shvedova retired during her first-round match against Mona Barthel due to a mid-back injury.
Representing Kazakhstan at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Shvedova lost in the first round to Misaki Doi of Japan.
In doubles, she and her compatriot, Galina Voskoboeva, faced Belgians Kirsten Flipkens/Yanina Wickmayer in the first round.
Flipkens/Wickmayer won the first set 6–1.
The match was not continued because Shvedova and Voskoboeva pulled out of the doubles event at the Olympics.

In Cincinnati at the Western & Southern Open, Shvedova lost in the first round of qualifying to Ana Konjuh.
Ranked fifty-two at the US Open, Shvedova made it to the fourth round for the first time in her career defeating Lara Arruabarrena, Wang Qiang, and Zhang Shuai.
In the fourth round, she was defeated by world No.
1 Serena Williams.

In Wuhan, China at the Wuhan Open, Shvedova reached the third round after wins over Chinese wildcard Zheng Saisai and thirteenth seed Roberta Vinci.
She was defeated in the third round by fourth seed Simona Halep.
In Beijing at the China Open, Shvedova advanced to the quarterfinals defeating seventh seed Carla Suárez Navarro, Belinda Bencic, and Alizé Cornet.
She lost in her quarterfinal match to third
Shvedova started the year at the Shenzhen Open. Coming through qualifying, she lost in the first round to Anett Kontaveit. In Sydney at the Apia International Sydney, Shvedova retired during her first round of qualifying match against Sesil Karatantcheva. At the Australian Open, Shvedova won her first-round match over Tsvetana Pironkova. In the second round, she lost to fifteenth seed Madison Keys.
Getting past qualifying at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Shvedova stunned seventh seed Roberta Vinci in the first round. In the second round, she was defeated by eventual champion Sara Errani. At the Qatar Total Open, Shvedova lost in the first round to Nao Hibino. In Indian Wells at the BNP Paribas Open, Shvedova won her first two rounds over qualifier Kristýna Plíšková and eleventh seed Lucie Šafářová. In the third round, she was defeated by qualifier Nicole Gibbs. At the Miami Open, Shvedova lost in the final round of qualifying to Kristýna Plíšková. In doubles, she and Tímea Babos reached the final where they lost to Bethanie Mattek-Sands/Lucie Šafářová.
Shvedova started her clay-court season at the Volvo Car Open. She was defeated in the second round by fifth seed Sara Errani. Playing in Madrid at the Mutua Madrid Open, Shvedova lost in the first round of qualifying to Mariana Duque Mariño. At the Italian Open, Shvedova was defeated in the first round of qualifying by Ana Konjuh. Shvedova played her final tournament before the French Open at Internationaux de Strasbourg. She lost in the first round to lucky loser Virginie Razzano. At the French Open, Shvedova was defeated in the first round by thirteenth seed and 2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova.
Shvedova began her grass-court season at the Ricoh Open. She was defeated in the first round by third seed and eventual finalist Kristina Mladenovic. However, in doubles, Shvedova and Oksana Kalashnikova won the title defeating Xenia Knoll/Aleksandra Krunić in the final. Playing at the first edition of the Mallorca Open, Shvedova lost in the first round to Daniela Hantuchová. At the Aegon International Eastbourne, Shvedova lost in the second round of qualifying to Alison Van Uytvanck. Ranked ninety-six at the Wimbledon Championships, Shvedova reached the quarterfinals in singles for the first time in her career defeating Julia Görges, seventeenth seed Elina Svitolina, 2013 Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki, and twenty-eighth seed Lucie Šafářová. In her quarterfinal match, she lost to eighth seed, five time Wimbledon Champion, and former world No. 1 Venus Williams. In doubles, Shvedova and Tímea Babos reached the final upsetting top seeds Hingis/Mirza en route to the final. In the final, Shvedova and Babos lost to the Williams sisters. Due to her quarterfinals result in singles at Wimbledon, Shvedova's ranking improved from 96 to 49.
Seeded seventh at the Swedish Open, Shvedova retired during her first-round match against Mona Barthel due to a mid-back injury. Representing Kazakhstan at the 2016 Rio Olympics, Shvedova lost in the first round to Misaki Doi of Japan. In doubles, she and her compatriot, Galina Voskoboeva, faced Belgians Kirsten Flipkens/Yanina Wickmayer in the first round. Flipkens/Wickmayer won the first set 6–1. The match was not continued because Shvedova and Voskoboeva pulled out of the doubles event at the Olympics.
In Cincinnati at the Western & Southern Open, Shvedova lost in the first round of qualifying to Ana Konjuh. Ranked fifty-two at the US Open, Shvedova made it to the fourth round for the first time in her career defeating Lara Arruabarrena, Wang Qiang, and Zhang Shuai. In the fourth round, she was defeated by world No. 1 Serena Williams.
In Wuhan, China at the Wuhan Open, Shvedova reached the third round after wins over Chinese wildcard Zheng Saisai and thirteenth seed Roberta Vinci. She was defeated in the third round by fourth seed Simona Halep. In Beijing at the China Open, Shvedova advanced to the quarterfinals defeating seventh seed Carla Suárez Navarro, Belinda Bencic, and Alizé Cornet. She lost in her quarterfinal match to third 
Yaroslava Shvedova