Spatial pattern of China’s rural digital economy based on subjective–Objective evaluation: Evidence from 2085 counties

The rural digital economy plays an essential role in China’s industrial upgrading, transformation, and urban–rural integration. To determine the state of China’s rural digital economy, we constructed a county-level evaluation system using the subjective–objective evaluation method and calculated the digital economic levels of 2085 counties. Then, we analyzed the spatial distribution characteristics, spatial autocorrelation pattern, spatial disequilibrium degree, and spatial driving force of the rural digital economy at the county level using spatial analysis technology and a self-organizing feature mapping model. The results are as follows: 1) Compared with the real economy, the agglomeration effect of the digital economy was more obvious, and the economic gradient was more significant. Specifically, the dense high-value regions formed a continuous belt on the eastern coast from the Beijing–Tianjin area to the Pearl River Delta, opposite the dense low-value regions in the west. 2) There were significant differences in the rural digital economy within cities or provinces. Intraregional differences were not necessarily linked to the overall digital economy level because central and northeastern China presented a more balanced rural digital economy. 3) Digital network performance, e-commerce level, and economic vitality were identified as the core factors influencing the rural digital economy.