Abstract: Most resource-based cities have achieved some results in low-carbon transformation by developing industrial diversification, cultivating non-resource-based alternative industries, promoting low-carbon technology and other transformation approaches.In this paper, an empirical analysis is conducted with DEA model which is based on the directional distance function, to measure Total Factor Productivity(TFP) with the panel data of 17 resource-based cities from 2008 to 2015.Then, the TFP measurement model, considering unexpected output, is to evaluate the low-carbon transition effect of resource-based cities.Main conclusions are as follows: there’s an ascending trend of resource-based cities’ TFP, which derives from technological progress and indicates the remarkable effects of their low-carbon technology transformation; the differentiation of transition effect exists between different cities, low-carbon transformation results in the eastern and central resource-based cities are better than that in the west, while the comprehensive and coal resource-based cities work best.