As climate risks continue to intensify, the importance of climate policies grows day by day. As significant sources of pollution and carbon emissions, the impact of climate policies on enterprises deserves due attention. Based on a quasi-natural experiment of climate-adaptive city construction in China, this paper utilizes data from A-share listed companies from 2013 to 2023 to examine the impact of location-oriented climate policies on corporate ESG performance. The results indicate that climate-adaptive city construction significantly enhances corporate ESG performance, and this conclusion remains valid after a series of robustness checks and endogeneity treatments. Mechanism tests reveal that climate-adaptive city construction improves corporate ESG performance through external monitoring effects and internal transmission effects. Heterogeneity tests find that the policy effects are primarily manifested in state-owned enterprises, enterprises in highly competitive industries, and enterprises in regions with high climate risks and severe air pollution. Further analysis shows that the policy effects are mainly reflected in the E (Environment) and G (Governance) dimensions. This paper reveals the relationship between location-oriented climate policies and micro-level corporate ESG behavior, providing policy basis and management insights for government departments to strengthen climate risk response and promote corporate green transformation.