We take “National Civilized City Selection” as a quasi-natural experiment, and examine the impact of the establishment of civilized cities on corporate trade credit and its mechanism, based on panel data matching prefecture-level cities with Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listed companies from 2003 to 2021. The study shows that the establishment of civilized cities significantly facilitates the acquisition of trade credit by enterprises in the jurisdiction. Further analysis shows that the impact mechanism lies in optimising external corporate governance and improving the transparency of corporate information, and that this positive effect is more prominent among enterprises located in cities with higher administrative levels, in industries with intense competition, with low quality audit, with low collateral level of assets and with high levels of indebtedness. The study contributes to an in-depth analysis of the economic consequences of the establishment of civilized cities and provides empirical references for the continued promotion of civilized city selection.