Abstract: Information literacy is an important index reflecting the level of human capital. This study analyzes the internal logical relationship between information literacy and farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology, and provides a new perspective for promoting its popularization and application of conservation tillage technology. This research is crucial for promoting the sustainable utilization of cultivated land resources. We conducted field surveys in Heilongjiang, Henan, Shandong, and Shanxi provinces and obtained first-hand microdata from 895 rural households. This study used the entropy method to construct an evaluation index system for farmers’ information literacy from three dimensions: information awareness, information knowledge, and information ability. The ordered probit model analyzed the direct impact of information literacy on farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology. The mediating effect model analyzed its indirect impact, whereas the moderating effect model assessed the moderating effect of ecological compensation in this relationship. The study revealed that 1) information literacy had a notable positive impact on farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology and information literacy can promote farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology. The results were confirmed using an endogeneity test and a series of robustness tests. Different dimensions of information literacy (i.e. information awareness, knowledge, and ability) promoted farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology, with the effects ranked as follows: information knowledge > information awareness > information ability. 2) The mechanism test results showed that information literacy promoted farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology by reducing information cost and enhancing expected return. Ecological compensation positively moderated the relationship between information literacy and farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology, indicating a complementary relationship between information literacy and ecological compensation. In other words, ecological compensation reinforced the role of information literacy in promoting the adoption of conservation tillage technology by farmers. 3) The results of the heterogeneity analysis showed that the promoting effect of information literacy on farmers’ adoption of conservation tillage technology was more obvious among large-scale, low-income, and new-generation farmers. Based on the above conclusions, we propose the following policy recommendations. First, to promote the popularization and application of conservation tillage technology, information literacy training of farmers should be actively conducted to improve their information literacy level. Second, it is necessary to strengthen the construction of the information infrastructure in rural areas and reduce the threshold for farmers’ information access. Third, the information supply on conservation tillage technology should be increased to improve farmers’ expectations. Fourth, a scientific and reasonable ecological compensation system for conservation tillage that plays an active role in the adoption of conservation tillage technologies should be established. Fifth, different information literacy promotion strategies should be adopted for different groups.