The development of grassland pastoral areas is of great strategic significance for animal husbandry in China. To promote the sustainable development of pastoral areas and increase the income of herders, the Chinese government implemented the Grassland Ecological Compensation Policy in 2011. Based on 3099 samples identified from 16 empirical studies, we conducted a meta-analysis and cumulative meta-analysis to explore factors affecting herdsmen’s income since the implementation of this policy, and analyzed the effects of certain factors over time. The factors significantly increasing herders’ income included education level, amount of household labor, number of livestock, and the leased area of grassland. The main concerns of herders were the grassland area and the number of livestock. Since the implementation of the policy, the effect of the quantity of livestock has increased significantly, while the effects of other factors have decreased. Many variables showed a degree of heterogeneity. The heterogeneity of household labor and grassland area was mainly due to regional factors, the policy implementation time, and the sampling methods.