Improving product circularity through circular economy strategies for small domestic appliance design in China

China is the world’s largest home appliance producer, and the rising manufacturing of small domestic appliance (SDA) is creating high carbon emissions worldwide. Due to China’s high carbon emissions, the country needs to improve its SDA design and production. This study aims to investigate the critical improvement of product circularity through circular economy strategies for SDA design. This desktop study analyses 37 journal articles from Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) databases from 2019 to 2024. This study explores the current circular economy strategies used by SDA to reduce carbon footprint and the gap in the application of circular economy strategies in SDA manufacturing. It also recommends the best circular economy strategies for SDA design to reduce carbon footprint. Key findings indicate that product disassembly, upgradability, and integrity are pivotal in extending product lifespans, reducing resource consumption, conserving materials, and reducing waste. In addition to directing future empirical and theoretical research in the circular economy, these findings can aid designers, researchers, stakeholders, and manufacturers in updating their knowledge of enhanced product circularity.