Gaining a comprehensive understanding of the energy-saving behaviors (ESB) of college students, who represent the backbone of the future society, is imperative for advancing energy conservation initiatives. This paper employs a PLS-SEM model with 2786 valid responses to investigate the determinants of college students' ESB within the comprehensive action determination model (CADM). The results show that (1) the applicability of CADM, including the theory of planned behavior, norm activation model, and ipsative theory of behavior, was confirmed in the context of college students' ESB. (2) The cultivation of energy-saving habits significantly contributes to the promotion of ESB. (3) The availability of energy-saving access has a positive impact on ESB. (4) Media's energy-saving promotional activities positively influence the energy-saving intention. (5) Energy-saving policy incentives exert a positive moderating influence on the transition from energy-saving intentions to ESB. Based on these empirical findings, this paper provides specific and target policy recommendations.