This study aims to quantify land cover changes, carbon emissions, and carbon sequestration in Pidie Regency, Aceh Province, Indonesia, over a decade (2010–2020), addressing the gap in localized analyses of deforestation and its impacts on carbon dynamics. Utilizing high-resolution GIS and remote sensing data, the study integrated spatial analysis with carbon stock calculations to assess the implications of forest cover transitions across different forest functions. The findings reveal that production forests experienced the highest deforestation (1,008 ha), contributing to peak carbon emissions of 2,218,017 tons of CO₂ during 2018–2020. Concurrently, carbon sequestration peaked at 1,174,395 tons of CO₂, primarily due to reforestation and natural regeneration in secondary forests and shrubs. Protected forests retained the most extensive carbon stocks, reaching 22,649,615 tons of CO₂ in 2017, underscoring their critical role in carbon storage. This research highlights the balance between carbon loss from deforestation and gains from recovery, offering actionable insights for targeted reforestation, agroforestry systems, and community-based forest management. A limitation is its reliance on satellite data, which may affect the precision of land cover classifications in complex forest ecosystems. The findings provide practical value for policymakers and conservationists by identifying key areas for intervention and reinforcing the need for sustainable forest management practices. Information regarding the condition of the forest in Pidie Regency is limited and has yet to receive attention; however, the potential for more significant forest damage is likely to occur, and scientific data from this research can be an initial step in forest conservation efforts.