Evaluating the role of ecological restoration in alpine peatlands for climate mitigation is both theoretically and practically important. Understanding how these restored peatlands contribute to carbon sequestration amid climate change will help us identify and predict the characteristics of carbon source and sink. This insight will also inform more effective strategies for peatland restoration, which is crucial for optimizing their impact on climate regulation. Land management and climate change significantly affected the carbon sink function of Zoige alpine peatlands. Based on the climate mitigation potential accounting framework of Natural Climate Solutions, this study refined the climate mitigation potential coefficient of alpine peatlands through meta-analysis, systematically evaluated the contribution of historical restoration in Zoige alpine peatlands to climate change mitigation, and projected their future climate mitigation capacity through restoration. The results indicated that: (1) Peatland degradation was effectively curbed between 2000 and 2020, resulting in a net increase of 42.77 km2 in the total peatland area by 2020. Between 2000 and 2005, the study area experienced severe peatland degradation, during which approximately 750 km2 of peatland was drained and converted to grassland. Following 2005, this degradation was effectively arrested: the rate of grassland rewetting and reconversion to peatland increased to roughly three times that observed from 2000 to 2005, resulting in a significant net expansion of peatland area. (2) Degraded peatlands contributed to higher carbon emissions, at 1204.50 g CO2e m-2 a-1, and lower methane emissions, at 878.96 g CO2e m-2 a-1. In contrast, restored peatlands reduced carbon emissions by 1281.67 g CO2e m-2 a-1 and increased methane emissions by 987.71 g CO2e m-2 a-1. (3) Between 2000 and 2020, the region’s net carbon balance comprised two distinct phases: a high-emission period from 2000 to 2005, followed by a net sequestration period from 2005 to 2020. Over the entire 2000—2020 interval, the Zoige alpine peatlands reduced carbon emissions by a total of 190.86 Gg CO2e m-2 a-1.It is anticipated that by 2035, they will have the potential to offset the total increase in carbon emissions resulting from historical peatland degradation. The comprehensive analysis demonstrated that integrating multi-source spatial and temporal data reduced assessment bias and provided a robust quantitative basis for characterizing the long-term average greenhouse gas emission rates of Zoige's alpine peatlands. The results of the study provided scientific support for the adoption of natural climate solutions in the Zoige alpine peatlands and had parametric implications for assessing the carbon sequestration benefits of peatland ecological restoration in other regions.