Climate change is one of the most serious challenges to humanity in the 21st century, exacerbating the vulnerability of many regions, especially those with agricultural populations who rely on natural resources for their livelihoods. Climate change adaptation methods are of common concern to the international community. A key to adaptation by various stakeholders is to reduce or eliminate existing limits and barriers. Clarifying the impact of climate change adaptation on the livelihoods of farmers is of great significance for making effective adaptive strategies. This paper is based on 539 questionnaires that were administered using the TOPSIS method. An analysis using a binary logistic regression model was performed for the major barriers to climate change adaptation faced by farmers in the Gannan Plateau, and the impacts of these barriers on their adaptation intention were determined. Normative barriers were identified as the most serious obstacles to climate change adaptation by farmers in the Gannan Plateau, followed by information and technology barriers, while institutional and cognitive barriers were the weakest obstacles. However, there were some differences in the barriers identified among different types of farmers. Information and technology barriers were the main issues for purely agricultural households, while institutional barriers were the main issue for households with combined occupations and non-agricultural households. Cognitive barriers, limitations of information accuracy and policy incentives, and the number of livestock all had positive impacts on the adaptation intention of purely agricultural households. However, the time selection constraints for adaptation strategies had a negative effect. Cognitive barriers, limitations of technical services and of policy incentives, and restrictions on resource acquisition had positive impacts on the adaptation intention of households with combined occupations. Finally, we put forward suggestions for countermeasures to address the barriers to climate change adaptation that farmers face.