Based on the panel data of 20 prefecture-level cities in Guangdong Province from 2013 to 2021, the influence of rural tourism on rural economy and its regional heterogeneity were theoretically analyzed, and an evaluation system of rural economy and rural tourism development was constructed. Besides, the influencing factors of tourism economy on rural economy were empirically tested by using regression measurement method. The results shows that the rural tourism in Guangdong Province had a positively direct effect on rural economic development, which was especially significant in terms of economic level and industrial structure, but not significant in terms of living standard. Rural tourism had a positive effect on rural economic development in Guangdong Province, but the development was not balanced among regions. The positive effect was the largest in northern and western Guangdong, followed by the Pearl River Delta region, while it was not significant in eastern Guangdong. Finally, some suggestions to promote rural economic development by rural tourism were put forward. Firstly, it is needed to improve the travel system and implement effective road network planning; secondly, a collaborative cooperation platform and multi-level development framework should be established to promote the agglomeration development of scientific and technological innovation; thirdly, development models should be innovated according to local conditions to achieve sustainable development of rural tourism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]