Improving agricultural production efficiency and transforming the traditional agricultural production and operation model are critical prerequisites for ensuring the stable production and supply of grain and other key agricultural products in major grain-producing regions. Based on panel data from 455 counties (cities) in major grain-producing areas spanning 2013 to 2023, this study employs a difference-in-differences (DID) model to empirically examine the impact of digital rural development policies on agricultural production efficiency and its underlying mechanisms. The findings indicate that: 1) Digital rural development has significantly enhanced agricultural production efficiency in major grain-producing regions, and this conclusion remains robust after a series of rigorous robustness tests; 2) Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the effects of digital rural policies are more pronounced in northern China"s major grain-producing areas, regions with lower levels of economic development, and areas characterized by significant terrain fluctuations; 3) Mechanism analysis demonstrates that digital rural development promotes improvements in agricultural production efficiency through multiple pathways, including facilitating large-scale agricultural operations, enhancing agricultural informatization, increasing government fiscal expenditures, strengthening financial service support, and elevating the level of high human capital; 4) Further analysis indicates that the impact of digital rural development policies is more evident in regions with larger agricultural operation scales, lower information technology levels, higher government fiscal expenditures, stronger financial service support, higher human capital levels, and more advanced socialized service systems. This study elucidates the mechanisms through which digital rural development drives improvements in agricultural production efficiency and provides valuable policy insights for the coordinated advancement of rural revitalization and agricultural digitalization.