As a key branch of online-to-offline (O2O) retail, the online-to-home (O2H) model enables goods acquisition through instant delivery, fundamentally reorienting urban retail spatial configuration from “accessibility” to “efficiency”. Using Jincheng, the main urban area of Tianjin as a case study, this research formulated a Goods Acquisition Efficiency (GAE) index to quantify the time-based efficiency gain of O2H over the conventional OIS (offline in-store) mode. An integrated XGBoost-SHAP approach was utilized to examine the spatial variations in efficiency gains and their associated factors. The results reveal that: (1) Efficiency gains follow a concentric pattern, increasing from the core to the periphery (Inner: 0.18; Middle: 0.20; Outer: 0.26), suggesting that O2H provides more pronounced benefits in peripheral areas where retail provision remains limited; (2) The dominant factors vary across zones: environmental attributes in the Inner Urban Zone, transportation and economic factors in the Outer Urban Zone; (3) O2H and OIS exhibit a complementary rather than substitutive relationship—physical stores in inner-city areas can maintain their current configuration, while peripheral zones may benefit from enhanced O2H fulfillment or conversion to micro-fulfillment centers. The GAE index and zonal comparison framework offer methodological references for differentiated optimization of urban retail networks.

Leisure space configuration has been recognized as a spatial approach to reducing carbon emissions from recreational travel, but the role of perceptual factors in linking inter-facility distance to travel behavior is not fully clear. This paper adopts a “relative distance–perceived time cost (PTC)–carbon emissions” framework to explore their associations. Based on 20 recreational hotspots in Tianjin and 2372 valid questionnaires, we apply correlation analysis, mediation tests and regression tree segmentation for empirical exploration. Results indicate that the maximum distance between commercial and other leisure facilities (ShopMax) correlates significantly with PTC and shows a potential indirect association with carbon emissions. The indirect effect is significant for single-point trips (p = 0.006), while only directional trends exist for chained trips due to sample constraints. Optimal distance intervals present nonlinear differences across facility types: scenic facilities (ScenicMax) have overlapping perception- and emission-friendly intervals, whereas ShopMax shows divergent intervals for chained trips. The 200–300 m range is consistently found to be a high-carbon zone. This exploratory analysis suggests perceived time cost may connect spatial configuration to low-carbon travel. Differentiated layout strategies warrant further exploration for various facilities and travel contexts.