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Growth-regulating factors (GRFs) encode plant-specific transcription factors that play a vital role in regulation of plant growth, development, and stress response. Although GRFs have been identified in various plants, there is no reported work available in <i>Actinidia</i> (commonly known as kiwifruit) so far. In the present study, we identified 22 <i>GRF</i> genes on <i>A. chinensis </i>(hereafter <i>A. chinensis</i> is referred to as Ac, and GRF genes in <i>A. chinensis </i>are referred to as <i>AcGRF</i>) distributed on 17 chromosomes and one contig, and 26 <i>GRF </i>genes in<i> A. eriantha</i> (hereafter <i>A. eriantha</i> is referred to as Ae, and GRF genes in <i>A. eriantha </i>are referred to as <i>AeGRF</i>) distributed on 21 chromosomes. Phylogenetic analysis showed that kiwifruit GRF proteins were clustered into five distinct groups. Additionally, kiwifruit <i>GRFs</i> showed motif composition and gene structure similarities within the same group. Synteny analysis showed that whole-genome duplication played a key role in the expansion of the GRF family in kiwifruit. The higher expression levels of kiwifruit <i>GRFs</i> in young tissues and under stress conditions indicated their regulatory role in kiwifruit growth and development. We observed two genes in Ae (<i>AeGRF6.1</i>, <i>AeGRF 6.2</i>) and two genes in Ac (<i>AcGRF 6.1</i>, <i>AeGRF 6.2</i>) significantly upregulated in different RNA-seq datasets. The presence of conserved protein structures and cis-regulatory elements caused functional divergence in duplicated gene pairs. The subcellular localization indicated the presence of kiwifruit <i>GRFs</i> in the nucleus of the plant cell. Protein-protein interaction analysis predicted <i>At</i>GIF protein orthologs for <i>Ac</i>GRFs and <i>Ae</i>GRFs. Taken together, we systematically analyzed the characterization of kiwifruit GRF family members for their potential role in kiwifruit development and <i>Pseudomonas syringae</i> pv. <i>actinidiae</i> (<i>Psa.</i>) invasion response. Further functional studies of kiwifruit GRFs in plant growth, development, and stress response will provide valuable insights for kiwifruit breeders.