<p>With the gradual expansion of China’s high-speed rail (HSR) network, the connection between HSR stations and urban development has become increasingly close. This study uses data on 109 prefecture-level cities and 54 HSR stations in China’s coastal regions. The multi-temporal China Land Use/Cover Change remote sensing database and nighttime light data from 2005 to 2020 were used to analyze how HSR stations had affected the coordination between station area and urban spatial expansion and economic growth. We found that, during the HSR construction phase, the expansion of station areas exerted the strongest driving effect on urban spatial growth in small- and medium-sized cities, and in peripheral and exurban HSR stations. Additionally, while first-tier cities and exurban HSR stations demonstrated weaker traction effects on economic centers, nearly all HSR stations significantly impacted the economic centers within their respective station areas. We also found that peripheral HSR stations were the most influential in fostering the coupling and coordination between urban spatial centers and economic centers. Furthermore, the proportion of cities in an undesirable decoupling state was negatively correlated with city size. This research contributes to the literature and provides insights on HSR stations and the development of urban space.</p>