As an important fishery resource in the offshore waters of Shandong Province, the fishing ground distribution of Sepia esculenta and its relationships with influencing factors have attracted much attention. This study constructed a generalized additive model (GAM) based on Tweedie distribution to analyze the distribution characteristics of Sepia esculenta fishing grounds in the offshore waters of Shandong Province and their relationships with fishing pressure and environmental factors, using monitoring data of fishery production from 2018 to 2023. The results showed that Sepia esculenta fishing grounds are mainly distributed in the Haizhou Bay fishing grounds and Qinghai fishing grounds in the central Yellow Sea. The center of gravity of the fishing grounds for Sepia esculenta tended to shift northwards annually, and showed a trend moving from northwest to southeast monthly. Through model comparison, the Tweedie GAM model, which includes fishing, environmental, and time factors, had the best fitting effect and predictive performance. Sea bottom salinity, sea bottom temperature, and depth that are suitable for the distribution of Sepia esculenta in autumn are 31‒34, 16‒22 ℃, and approximate 28 m, respectively. The fishing effort of the current year had a positive effect on the catch per unit effort (CPUE) of Sepia esculenta, while the fishing effort of the previous year had a negative effect. This study revealed the impact of external driving factors on the distribution of Sepia esculenta resources, which is of great significance for the rational planning of commercial fishing production, strengthening the scientific management and resource conservation of Sepia esculenta.