Objective To observe the expression of CCL19 in colorectal carcinoma tissues and to investigate its effect on proliferation, migration and invasion of colorectal cancer cells. Methods The expression of CCL19 in 85 confirmed colorectal carcinoma tissues and the corresponding adjacent normal tissues was detected by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry of tissue microarray. SW620 cell line highly expressing CCR7(CCL19 receptor) as screened by qRT-PCR and Western blotting analysis was stimulated by different concentrations of rh-CCL19 (0, 10, and 100 ng/mL). Then the cell proliferation, migration and invasion capacity were examined by CCK-8, wound healing assay, and Transwell assay, respectively. Results Immunohistochemistry and qRT-PCR results demonstrated that CCL19 expression was significantly lower in the colorectal carcinoma tissues than in the normal tissues (P<0.05). CCL19 expression was associated with tumor size and invasion depth (P<0.01). Treatment with rh-CCL19 significantly decreased the proliferation, migration and invasion capacity of SW620 cells(P<0.05). Conclusion CCL19 expression in colorectal cancer tissues is lower than that in the adjacent normal tissues, and the expression is associated with tumor size and invasion depth. CCL19 can inhibit the proliferation, migration and invasion capacity of SW620 cells.