<p>Soil is a finite resource that cannot be recovered in the human lifetime, affecting every aspect of life. The agricultural industry is constantly facing soil pollution by heavy metals due to a wide range of chemicals present in various agricultural processes, such as pesticides, insecticides, weed killers, and fertilizers. Out of all the soil treatment methods, adsorption has more advantages. Numerous studies have explored adsorption's positive and negative aspects, but there is a research gap in this area as no bibliometric study has been conducted. This paper analyzes the research progress on the adsorption of heavy metals from the soil between 2000 and 2022, as documented in the Scopus database, using bibliometric indicators. Data regarding publication growth trends, subject categories, countries, journals, authors, and keywords were analyzed systematically. Based on a social network analysis of co-authorship relationships, the cooperation between countries and authors' profiles was visualized, assessed, and constructed. The study indicates that the number of publications about this topic has increased significantly over the last few years. China ranked as the number one country in terms of quality and quantity. Additionally, Rinklebe Jӧrg, from South Korea, was quantitatively the most productive author. The findings showed that Cadmium and Lead were the most researched topics among heavy metals.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>