<p>The Internet, an integral component in the knowledge economy, is driving the intelligent evolution of China’s socioeconomic landscape. It is also accelerating trans-regional economic connections, thereby transforming domestic inter-regional trade linkages. Using Chinese provincial panel data for 2005–2021 and taking inter-provincial railway freight as a proxy indicator of inter-provincial trade, this paper investigates the impact of internet access on inter-provincial trade based on the trade gravity model. The findings indicate that reducing the internet access gap, rather than enhancing internet access in one part of the domestic trade pair, plays a significant role in promoting inter-provincial trade, particularly through increased trade diversity between regions. The findings are robust across various model specifications and subsample observations. The political implication suggests the need to avoid significant disparities in internet access and to improve internet access synchronously across different regions.</p>