Objective To analyze risk factors of lymphatic metastasis in early gastric cancer in order to discuss reasonable therapeutic regimen. Methods The clinical data of 148 patients with early gastric cancer surgically treated in the Anhui Tumor Hospital from February 2013 to November 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. The relationship between the lymphatic metastasis with the clinicopathologic characteristics of the patient with the early gastric cancer was analyzed by the univariate and multiple regression analyses. Results The lymphatic metastasis were observed in 15 of 148 patients (10.14%), 1 in the 70 (1.43%) mucosal lesions and 14 in the 78 (17.95%) submucosal lesions. The results of the univariate analysis showed that the patients’ age, size of tumor, macroscopic type, invasion depth, and vascular invasion were related to the lymphatic metastasis in the early gastric cancer (P<0.050), the results of the multiple regression analysis showed that the invasion depth and vascular invasion were the independent risk factors of the lymphatic metastasis in the early gastric cancer (P<0.050). Conclusions Invasion depth and vascular invasion are closely related to lymphatic metastasis in early gastric cancer. Precise evaluation of lymphatic metastasis before treatment is very important to patient with early gastric cancer.