Computing infrastructure has become a critical underlying resource for the digital development and sustainable transformation of manufacturing firms. Using panel data from Chinese listed manufacturing firms from 2011 to 2024, this study employs a two-way fixed-effects model to examine the impact of computing infrastructure development on corporate ESG performance. The results show that computing infrastructure development significantly improves firms’ ESG performance, and this finding remains robust across a series of robustness checks. Further analysis indicates that this effect operates primarily through reducing internal transaction costs, optimizing human capital structure, and promoting digital transformation, while being strengthened by managerial capabilities and the level of regional green finance development. This study extends research on computing infrastructure and corporate ESG from the perspective of underlying digital infrastructure, providing empirical evidence on how digital resources contribute to corporate sustainability and offering implications for optimizing computing infrastructure deployment.