["Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, Volume 33, Issue 2, Page 2177-2195, March 2026. ", "\nABSTRACT\nThis study examines the impact of peer corporate social responsibility (CSR) performance on a firm's profitability by employing fixed‐effects panel regressions on a sample of listed Chinese firms during 2010–2021. We find that the high‐quality CSR performance of peer firms has a time‐lagged negative effect on the profitability of the focal firm, because it provides a competitive advantage to peer firms. This effect is stronger in more competitive industries and when industry strategy differentiation is high, supporting our framework grounded in the resource‐based view (RBV). The results highlight the crucial role of network status in mitigating the adverse effects of lower CSR performance. Peer CSR performance negatively influences the persistence of the focal firm's profitability. Our study advances the literature by developing a competitive framework and addressing the time‐dependent nature of peer CSR effects. By integrating network theory, we deepen insights into the moderating mechanisms that impact CSR peer effects.\n"]