In contrast to previous studies focusing on aid-trade relations merely under the small-country model, aid competition is included in the framework of empirical analysis for the first time in this paper, which uses the concept of concentration ratio to construct aid competition indicators and establishes a panel model to estimate the impact of aid competition on Sino-African trade and its mechanism. The findings are as follows: (1) After considering aid competition, China’s aid still shows a stable trade promotion effect and aid competition from the United States, the European Union, and Japan have not reduced Sino-African trade. (2) There is a significant threshold effect on the impact of aid competition on Sino african trade, the effect of aid-trade is heterogeneous due to the scale of aid, the level of economic development and size of economy in recipients. (3) China’s aid influences Sino-African trade through economic infrastructure rather than social infrastructure, and there is evidence that aid competition plays a moderate role through social infrastructure. This paper suggests that the impact of aid competition on the development of economic and trade relations between China and the recipients should be viewed rationally. In addition, it provides evidence for China’s aid cooperation with other donors.