The coordination of ecological construction and urbanization is a guarantee of sustainable regional development and is of great significance in guiding urbanization scientifically and achieving high-quality development. It holds significant importance in scientifically guiding urbanization and achieving high-quality development. To investigate the correlation between ecological vulnerability and urbanization process in central region of China, with a focus on Hunan Province, each county was assessed as the evaluation unit. An ecological vulnerability evaluation index system was developed using the ecological sensitivity-ecological resilience-ecological pressure model (SRP). Additionally, an urbanization level evaluation index system was constructed based on the population-economy-society-space model (PESS). The study investigated the spatial coupling relationship between ecological vulnerability and urbanization level in Hunan Province from 2000 to 2020 using the coupling coordination degree model (CCDM) for multidimensional assessment. Additionally, the study sought to investigate the interactive effects of these factors through the application of models such as bivariate spatial autocorrelation and geographically and temporally weighted regression (GTWR). We observed the following: (1) During the course of the study, it was observed that the ecological vulnerability in Hunan Province exhibited a trend of initially worsening and subsequently improving. The area around Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan was identified as a heavily vulnerable region, with the vulnerability spreading in a north-south direction. This resulted in a pattern where the northern and southern regions displayed high ecological vulnerability, while the central and western areas showed lower levels of ecological fragility. (2) The level of urbanization in Hunan Province varied significantly, and the general trend was increasing. The high-level urbanization areas had transitioned from a scattered layout emanating from the administrative centers of prefecture-level cities in 2000 to a high-value cluster with the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan urban agglomeration as the core in 2020. The area exhibited an overall higher in the eastern part and lower in the western part distribution pattern. (3) There had been a noticeable decrease in severely imbalanced counties, with a clear increased trend towards a reduction in the number of counties experiencing significant imbalances in Hunan Province. Furthermore, the level of urbanization was identified as a primary factor constraining the high-quality, balanced development of the ecological environment and urbanization in Hunan Province. (4) The results of the interaction indicated that urbanization development led to an increased level of regional ecological vulnerability, while the ecological conditions in the region in turn constrained the sustainable and high-quality development of urbanization. Studies suggested that in Hunan Province, efforts should be focused on promoting the healthy development of ecological environment construction and urbanization level, alleviating the contradiction between urbanization development and ecological environment, with a view to realizing the synergistic development of regional urbanization and ecology.