Compound drought-heatwave (CDHW) events have occurred more frequently in recent decades. However, it remains unclear whether these CDHW events exacerbate the effects of individual droughts on vegetation growth. By using the MODIS Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) and spatial-continuous Solar-Induced Fluorescence (SIF) datasets from 2000 to 2020 in the Northern Hemisphere (>= 23.5 degrees N), we compared the response of peak vegetation growth (intra-annual maximum EVI or SIF) to individual droughts and CDHW that occurred in the early growing season across different biomes. Furthermore, we developed a random forest model to investigate the impact of multiple climatic and biological factors on the spatial variability of drought response during peak vegetation growth. Our findings revealed that droughts negatively affected peak growth across most biomes, particularly in arid and semi-arid grasslands and desert biomes; however, the negative impact was diminished or even reversed in wetter or colder biomes. Furthermore, CDHW intensified the negative effects of individual drought on peak growth in arid and semi-arid biomes but intensified the positive influence in wetter or colder biomes. Key factors influencing the response of vegetation to early-season drought or CDHW included solar radiation, daily maximum temperature, and anomalies in atmospheric CO2 concentration relative to normal years (Delta CO2). Vegetation in regions with higher temperatures, stronger radiation, and lower CO2 concentrations exhibited decreased resistance to individual drought and CDHW. Our findings underscore the need to mitigate the adverse effects of CDHW events on terrestrial ecosystems in the future.