The study synthesizes research advances on China’s rural revitalization pathways using datasets generated from the Web of Science core database and visualized with R-studio’s Biblioshiny software package. A bibliometric technique was utilized to report on some key actors’ performance metrics and contributions between 2017 and 2022. This study puts forth the following points based on evidence generated (1) the rate of change analysis revealed increasing scientific output leads to the advancement of various sectors and overall societal progress (2) the top 5 performing journals, namely; “Sustainability,” “Land Use Policy,” “International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health,” “Land,” and “Journal of Cleaner Production” produce and disseminate information that drive innovations, socioeconomic development and policy responses (3) collaborative network analysis revealed a low level of collaboration between (i.e., inter) the top-performing authors in the field, whereas a high degree was observed among (i.e., intra) the dominant authors and their cohorts (4) the proposed thematic map classified "the concept of rural revitalization" into four broad themes: niche, motor, emerging or declining, and basic topics. Evidence-based decision-making scenarios and cross-cutting initiatives highlighted in this study foster "creative placemaking" and "smart rural shrinkage" efforts by informing the decisions of nations within the Global North and South frames to re-evaluate revitalization strategies amid sustainability concerns. Future researchers and donors are presented with the ease and avenues on where to seek appropriate information based on emerging frontiers and contributions of top journals, authors and nations with low scientific output and investments in rural development.