Vettel, who has already won the F1 title, finished in 1 minute 11.918 at the 4.3-kilometer (2.6-mile) Interlagos track. The 24-year-old German drew level with Mansell after winning his 14th pole at the Abu Dhabi GP two weeks ago.
Vettel's Red Bull teammate, Mark Webber, was second with a lap of 1:12.099.
Jenson Button of McLaren was third in 1:12.283 and teammate Lewis Hamilton will start fourth after finishing in 1:12.480. Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso was fifth for Ferrari.
Vettel parked his car and put his finger up to show who was No. 1 again, his trademark celebration that has been present all year long.
"This is really special, it's different from the other poles," he said.
Mansell set the record with Williams in a 16-race season in 1992, winning nine times to claim his sole F1 drivers' title. He failed to start from pole at races in Canada and Hungary. He had six consecutive poles to start the season and five straight to finish.
Vettel broke the record in 19 races. He failed to win pole in Spain, England, Germany and South Korea. His worst starting position was third, in Germany.
With the title having already been decided since the Japanese GP, the fight for second place is at stake in Brazil. Button, Alonso and Webber still have a chance to finish runner-up. Button has a 10-point lead over Alonso and an 18-point advantage over Webber.
Vettel dominated the season with 11 victories, but it was Hamilton who won the last race in Abu Dhabi after a tire failure forced Vettel to retire on the first lap.
Red Bull also has already won the constructors' championship, with McLaren finishing second and Ferrari third.
