Changes in precipitation patterns are intensifying soil drying dynamics, profoundly affecting ecosystem carbon and water cycling. However, how photosynthesis changes during short-term soil moisture (SM) decline at daily scales following moisture pulses remain poorly understood across terrestrial ecosystems. Using global flux tower measurements, we identified soil dry-down events following moisture pulses and analyzed daily gross primary production (GPP) responses across dryland and non-dryland ecosystems. We found that drylands exhibited a stronger and more pronounced positive response relative to the first day of dry-down due to moisture replenishment, whereas non-drylands showed more variable patterns, with GPP increases during dry-down more common in drylands. Across all sites, daily GPP was primarily driven by precipitation, radiation, and pre-pulse SM. Furthermore, the timing of dry-down events strongly influenced GPP changes, with events occurring during phases of pronounced GPP rise or decline contributing substantially to total carbon uptake. These findings highlight distinct ecosystem-specific GPP response to moisture pulse during soil dry-down and emphasize the need to represent such dynamics in carbon-climate models under changing precipitation patterns.