To minimize the heat-affected zone (HAZ) width in laser-cut carbon fiber composites, the Box-Behnken experimental design was employed using the response surface method to establish a regression equation for the HAZ width at the laser entrance. The effects of laser power, scanning speed, auxiliary gas pressure, focus position, and their interactions on the response surface were investigated. The process parameters were optimized based on the regression equation and actual cutting results. The experimental results show that the laser power, scanning speed, focus position, and auxiliary gas pressure are the most important factors affecting the HAZ width at the laser inlet. The optimal process parameters are a laser power of 170 W, a scanning speed of 1.5 m/min, an auxiliary gas pressure of 0.6 MPa, and a focus on the upper surface of the specimen. The experimental results show that the HAZ width at the laser inlet was 486.13 μm, with an average error of 5.3% for the regression equation.