Developing new quality productive forces is both an inherent requirement and a crucial measure for advancing high-quality development. By examining the connotations, characteristics, and practical pathways of new quality productive forces, this study systematically designs an evaluation index system for new quality productive forces to better understand the realistic foundation and spatiotemporal characteristics of new quality productive forces development in China, so as to facilitate the cultivation of new quality productive forces. Based on panel data from 30 Chinese provinces (excluding Tibet, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan) from 2013 to 2022, this paper applies the entropy method to measure the inter-provincial levels of new quality productive forces in China. It further employs Dagum Gini coefficients, kernel density estimation, traditional and spatial Markov chain models, a modified gravity model, and social network analysis to investigate the spatiotemporal features and regional disparities of China’s new quality productive forces. The results indicate: (1) The overall development level of China’ s new quality productive forces shows an increasing trend over time. ( 2) The evolution of new quality productive forces in China exhibits regional heterogeneity, which is characterized by imbalanced development. The ranking of development levels is: Eastern Region > Western Region > Central Region>Northeastern Region. (3) Disparities in the development level of new quality productive forces across China continue to widen. (4) The evolution of new quality productive forces in China consistently advances forward, demonstrating club convergence and spatial spillover effects. (5) The network agglomeration of new quality productive forces continuously strengthens. (6) Clear regional functional differentiation emerges: the eastern region forms a “ core-periphery” structure; central and western regions complement resources through external cooperation; hub nodes such as Guangdong play prominent roles; and the western region demonstrates policy-driven “long-range direct access” capabilities. Together, these dynamics are fostering the formation of a polycentric network.