BACKGROUND: Due to its high morbidity and mortality, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has become a major global healthcare issue. Although there is abundant research regarding COPD, a bibliometric analysis of the literature related to mitochondria and COPD is lacking. Thus this study aimed to summarize the research status, research direction, and research hotspots of the published articles concerning COPD and mitochondria. METHODS: A literature search for included publications related to COPD and mitochondria was carried out on the Web of Science Core Collection from the date of database establishment to December 15, 2022. A subsequent bibliometric and visual analysis of the included publications was conducted via Microsoft Excel, R software, CiteSpace, and VOSviewer. RESULTS: A total of 227 published articles on COPD and mitochondria from 139 journals were included. Over the study period, the annual publication number and citation frequency in this field both showed a trend of continuous growth. The United States had the highest centrality and was the most productive country. The frequently occurring keywords were "oxidative stress", "obstructive pulmonary disease", "dysfunction", "mitochondria", "inflammation", and "cigarette smoke", among others. Recent research hotspots included autophagy, model, mitochondria, health, and extracellular vesicles (EVs). Despite an abundance and variety of research, there is still relatively little academic communications between scholars and institutions. CONCLUSIONS: This bibliometric study can help researchers gain a quick overview of the research into mitochondria and COPD and thus inform novel ideas and directions for future research in this field.