<p>Promoting residents’ engagement has become increasingly crucial for improving the effectiveness of sponge-style old community renewal (SOCR). However, the exploration SOCR has predominantly been explored from a technical perspective, with an absence of studies focusing on residents’ engagement. This study investigates the profiles and determinants of residents’ engagement in SOCR projects, utilizing an enhanced engagement framework combining cluster analysis (CA) and binary logistic regression (BLR). An empirical analysis of 1,657 residents across 17 communities in five pilot sponge cities identified seven distinct engagement clusters, ranging from non-engagement to full engagement. The results indicate that higher income, social capital, psychological capital, positive habit, and community attachment are associated with active engagement in SOCR projects, with the field moderating these relationships. These findings offer practical strategies to enhance community participation in SOCR projects, such as investing in infrastructure, promoting successful examples through effective advertising, and creating engagement guidelines. The study provides theoretical and practical insights by presenting a comprehensive framework for understanding residents’ engagement, which can guide policymakers in developing targeted interventions to foster full community participation and achieve environmental sustainability. Highlights. An enhanced engagement framework for residents’ engagement in sponge-style old community renewal has been developed. Residents were categorized into seven distinct engagement clusters and their evolutionary relationships were analyzed. Factors influencing residents’ engagement were classified into self-driven and externally-driven categories. Strategies to foster residents’ engagement in sponge-style old community renewal have been proposed.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>