<p>China is advancing its carbon neutral strategy by establishing a comprehensive low-carbon policy system. A topic analysis of policies can provide valuable insights into the specific measures taken by the country to achieve low-carbon goals and the government’s main focus. This study examined 1971 Chinese low-carbon policy documents, totaling 6.8 million words and used mixed text-mining approaches to conduct policy analysis. We have found that China advances its low-carbon strategy through a coercive policy diffusion approach under the “1 + <i>N</i>” policy system, which outlines five guiding principles and ten key actions. Using topic modeling, this study identifies eight key areas of focus in China’s low-carbon policies. Findings indicate that policy attention to low-carbon issues evolves alongside changing national strategic priorities, with a significant shift from conceptual promotion to practical implementation. In terms of the central–local relationship, the central government has established the regional phased action, ensuring that key policies are implemented in a top-down, coordinated manner. However, we also observed differences in policy focus: central policies prioritize institutional design and emissions regulation, while local governments focus more on the implementation and urban development. Additionally, we observed varying levels of risk awareness across different policy areas. The topics of carbon neutrality and new energy, responsible units, and city development are notably risk-related, with significant differences in risk focus between central and local governments in these areas. These findings underscore the evolving nature of China’s low-carbon strategy and the differing priorities between central and local levels in policy execution and risk management.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>