The marketization of data elements is an important starting point for the high-quality development of new quality productive forces in enterprises. The promotion of the market-oriented allocation process of data elements can effectively release the value of data elements, accelerate the integration of data elements and traditional elements, drive enterprise innovation, optimize resource allocation, promote the development of new business formats, help enterprise management reform, and accelerate the cultivation and development of new quality productive forces in enterprises. Based on the panel data of listed companies in China from 2011 to 2022, this paper uses the quasi-natural experiment of the data trading platform established in 2014 to investigate the impact of the market-oriented allocation of data elements on the development of new quality productive forces of enterprises by using the staggered difference-in-difference model. The results show that: (1) The market-oriented allocation of data elements promotes the development of new quality productive forces of enterprises. (2) The market-oriented allocation of data elements, through the digital industrial agglomeration effect, digital finance effect, and digital infrastructure effect at the macro-regional level, generally forms a mechanism of “market-oriented allocation of data elements empowering urban digital economy development and the development of new quality productive forces in enterprises”. This mechanism effectively fosters the development of new high-quality productive forces of enterprises. (3) The enhancing effect of the market-oriented allocation of data elements exhibits significant heterogeneity between enterprises in different industries, ownership structures, enterprise sizes, and regions. Specifically, the market-oriented allocation of data elements significantly improves new quality productive forces in non-high-tech enterprises, non-state-owned enterprises, smaller-sized enterprises, and enterprises outside the eastern region. Compared with the previous literature, this paper expands on the following three aspects: First, it explores the impact of the market-oriented allocation of data elements on new quality productive forces of enterprises from a novel perspective, providing new theoretical support for enhancing new quality productive forces of enterprises from the standpoint of market-oriented allocation of data elements. Second, from the perspective of empowering urban digital economy development, including the digital industrial agglomeration effect, digital finance effect, and digital infrastructure effect, this study examines the specific mechanisms through which the market-oriented allocation of data elements impacts the new high-quality productive forces of enterprises. This research, which explores the mechanisms by which the market-oriented allocation of data elements affects the new high-quality productive forces of enterprises, serves as a valuable supplement to the relevant theories regarding the new high-quality productive forces of enterprises. Thirdly, this paper deeply studies the heterogeneity of the market-oriented allocation of data elements at the industry, enterprise, and regional levels, and further deepens the understanding of its effect on new quality productive forces of enterprises. This study provides solid theoretical and empirical support for the formulation of relevant policies aimed at cultivating new quality productive forces of enterprises. This paper has played an active role in promoting the market-oriented allocation of data elements and releasing the value of factors, which helps accelerate the speed and efficiency of this process. Through an in-depth analysis of the mechanism of data elements in the process of market-oriented allocation, this paper not only reveals the great potential of data elements as a new means of production but also emphasizes their important role in optimizing resource allocation and improving economic efficiency, to effectively promote the full release of the value of data elements. In addition, considering the uniqueness of industries and regions, this paper also puts forward differentiated policy suggestions for the development of new quality productive forces according to local conditions, so as to help promote the market-oriented reform of data elements.