The study assessed the adoption and utilisation of Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices (CSAPs) among rice farmers in Benue and Nasarawa States, Nigeria. Primary data were collected from 400 rice farmers through a structured questionnaire using a multistage sampling technique. Descriptive statistics and the Ordered Probit regression model were employed to analyse the data. The results revealed that the mean age of farmers was 42 years, most were male (64.75%) and married (74.75%), and 63% had at least secondary education. The majority (62.75%) had access to extension services while only 16% accessed agricultural credit. The results also shows that the majority of rice farmers were medium and high users of CSAPs, indicating a relatively high adoption level in both states. Commonly adopted practices included wetland (Fadama) cultivation, crop rotation, cover cropping, minimum tillage, and the use of organic manure. Moreover, the Moreover, the Ordered Probit regression results showed that education (p ≤ 0.01), household size (p ≤ 0.01), family labour (p ≤ 0.05), access to extension services (p ≤ 0.01), ownership of communication tools (p ≤ 0.10), sex (p ≤ 0.05), livestock ownership (p ≤ 0.01), and farm size (p ≤ 0.10) had significant positive effects on CSAP utilisation. Conversely, age (p ≤ 0.10) and distance to input markets (p ≤ 0.01) exerted significant negative influences on utilisation levels. The study concludes that enhancing farmers’ access to information, credit, and extension services is crucial for increasing CSAP adoption and utilisation. Therefore, the study recommends that government agencies and agricultural extension services should formulate and implement policies that promote farmer education, expand extension outreach, and provide accessible financial and infrastructural support to accelerate the widespread adoption of CSAPs in the region.