Objective To explore the research status, hotspots and tendency of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) for the treatment of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) based on CiteSpace software. Methods Literature related to ECMO for the treatment of ARDS from 2004 to 2024 was retrieved from domestic and foreign databases. The CiteSpace software was used to visually analyze the annual number of publications, cooperation, co⁃citation and key words of the literature. Results A total of 517 Chinese articles and 2923 English articles were included. From 2004 to 2024, the annual number of publications related to ECMO for the treatment of ARDS exhibited an overall upward trend, therein there were 463 authors in Chinese literature, with 88 core authors and 176 publications. There was still a lack of cooperation between the authors, and no core author group had been formed. There were 800 authors of English literature, with 77 core authors and 1411 publications. There was still a lack of cooperation between the authors, and no core author group had been formed yet. A total of 75 countries published articles on ECMO for the treatment of ARDS. The top five countries in terms of number of publications were the United States (1054 articles), Germany (503 articles), China (319 articles), Italy (318 articles), and France (303 articles), among which the United Kingdom had the highest concentration (0.21). The top 3 research institutions with the highest number of Chinese publications were Department of Critical Care Medicine of Zhongda Hospital Southeast University (10 articles), the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine (6 articles) and China⁃Japan Friendship Hospital (5 articles). The top 3 research institutions with the highest number of English publications were the Assistance Publique Hopitaux Paris (187 articles), Institut National de la Sante et de la Recherche Medicale (160 articles), and Sorbonne University (147 articles). EOLIA trial of Combes A's team (490 times) and CESAR trial of Peek GJ's team (253 times) were the most frequently cited articles. At present, the research hotspots in this field were the change of disease spectrum, intervention methods and combined therapy, and the prevention and control of complications via ECMO combination therapy. Prone position ventilation, critical care, coronavirus disease 2019, cohort, document, guidelines, impact were the future research trends. Conclusion Driven by public health emergencies, there is a gradual increase in the number of studies on ECMO for the treatment of ARDS. The international cooperation network is loose and there is a lack of core authors. Domestic studies have geographical limitations, so data sharing and international alliances should be strengthened. Current research focuses on the change of disease spectrum, combined treatment mode and complication prevention and control. In the future, domestic research is turning to the comprehensive management of “vital sign support, combined treatment, and weaning rehabilitation”, and international research will deepen the “precision and standardization” treatment and carry out multi⁃dimensional social value evaluation.