To enhance the shear strength of masonry structures while preserving their original appea-rance, steel strips or bars are bent to fit the shape of the masonry joints and used to reinforce the masonry specimens, and digital image correlation (DIC) method was used to conduct shear tests on the reinforced masonry specimens. Furthermore, a numerical simulation method was utilized to create a model of the masonry shear test specimen and analyze the impact of the steel strip width on the shear strength of the masonry. The findings indicate that the embedded reinforcement or steel strip can effectively limit the separation between layers, enhance the integrity of the masonry, and transform the failure mode from single shear failure to double shear failure, resulting in a significant increase in the bearing capacity. The ultimate load of the specimens strengthened with single-sided steel strip, double-sided steel strip, and double-sided reinforcement has increased by 23.63%, 61.18%, and 35.02% respectively. Additionally, the corresponding displacement at the ultimate load has increased by 16.38%, 23.41%, and 16.95%. The tensile restraint effect of steel strips or bars can increase the ductility of masonry structures and modify the characteristics of brittle failure of the masonry structure.