Under the dual challenges of the global energy crisis and climate change, zero-carbon buildings have emerged as a critical strategy for achieving carbon neutrality. This study employs both experiment measurements and simulation methods to investigate the operational performance of zero-carbon residential buildings based on the demand-side energy scheduling. Taking a zero-carbon residential demonstration project in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, as the case study, datasets regarding energy consumption and indoor thermal-humidity were collected under various operating conditions to validate the practical effectiveness of the scheduling strategy. Subsequently, the EnergyPlus software was used to simulate annual operations, and combined with a time-of-use electricity pricing policy in order to assess the changes in energy consumption and electricity costs. Results indicate that the demand-side scheduling can significantly reduce the peak electricity loads. With the implementation of time-of-use pricing, the daily electricity costs were reduced respectively by 42.68% on weekdays and 47.59% on holidays, resulting in an annual cost reduction of 33.79%. In addition, the high thermal insulation and airtight construction of zero-carbon buildings is able to ensure the stable indoor temperatures following the demand-side scheduling, which effectively lowers down the energy consumption and costs. These finding can facilitate the large-scale sustainable development of zero-carbon buildings with PV modules.