County-level urbanization is an important driving force connecting urban and rural areas and promoting comprehensive rural revitalization. This study uses panel data from 310 counties in the Yangtze River Delta from 2014 to 2023 to empirically examine the impact and mechanisms of county-level urbanization on comprehensive rural revitalization. The study finds that county-level urbanization significantly promotes comprehensive rural revitalization, with agricultural science and technology levels playing an intermediary role. Heterogeneity analysis shows that in provinces with relatively low levels of urbanization, the promoting effect of county-level urbanization is stronger. Based on this, it is suggested to: strengthen the functions of county-level carriers to promote integrated urban-rural development; promote the equalization of high-quality public services to enhance the comprehensive capacity of county towns; and advance industrial upgrading and regional coordination according to local conditions.
Zhou et al. (Sat,) studied this question.