Background B-box (BBX) proteins are important factors involving in the regulation of plant growth and development, and have been identified in many plant species. However, the characteristics and transcription patterns of BBX genes in wild peanut are limited. Results In the present study, we identified and characterized 24 BBX genes in a wild peanut Arachis duranensis. The AdBBX members distributed on 9 of the 10 chromosomes and chromosome 3 contained the most AdBBX members, with 6 AdBBXs. 16 AdBBX proteins had two distinct BBX domains, 11 members contained one CCT domain, and 7 genes had both BBX and CCT domains. Protein structure analysis revealed that AdBBX were classified into five clades: I (3 genes), II (4 genes), III (4 genes), IV (9 genes) and V (4 genes), on the basis of the diversity of conserved BBX and CCT domains. Moreover, 15 distinct motifs were found in these 24 AdBBX proteins and motif 1 and 5 existed in all the AdBBX proteins. Duplication analysis revealed that 4 interchromosomal duplicated gene pairs were obtained and all of them belonged to group IV. In addition, 95 kinds of cis-acting elements were found in the promoter regions of AdBBXs and 53 types were predicted to have putative functions. The numbers and types of cis-acting elements varied in these AdBBX promoters, as a result, AdBBX genes exhibited distinct expression levels in different tissues. The transcription investigation combined with synteny analysis suggested AdBBX8 might be the key factor involving in flowering time regulation in Arachis duranensis. Conclusion Overall, this study provides a genome-wide identification of BBX genes in a wild peanut Arachis duranensis. Characteristic and transcription pattern analysis revealed their critical roles in plant growth and development. Our study will provide essential information for further functional characteristic investigation of AdBBX genes.