Objective To study the expression and significance of NPM1 in colorectal cancer. Methods The expression of NPM1 was detected by immunohistochemistry in 50 cases of the colorectal cancer tissue and adjacent normal tissue. Results The expression of NPM1 in colorectal cancer tissue was significantly higher than that in the adjacent tissue (P<0.001). The expression of NPM1 has significant relationship with tumor size, TNM stage, Dukes stage, lymphatic metastasis and distant metastasis. It was unrelated with the sex, age, and tumor differentiation degree of patients (P>0.05). Conclusion The expression of NPM1 in colorectal cancer is closely related with the development of tumor.