Tongue squamous cell carcinoma (TSCC) is more aggressive than other cancers in the head and neck region because of its potential for metastasis. Recently, β2‑adrenergic receptor (β2‑AR) has been reported to be a potential promoter in various types of solid cancer. However, the role of β2‑AR and its effect on TSCC is not well documented. Histological staining, western blot analysis, migration and invasion assay were used. In this study, the expression of β2‑AR was increased in TSCC tissue compared with adjacent non‑cancerous epithelium. Further analysis demonstrated that increased expression of β2‑AR was correlated with differentiation, lymph node metastasis and reduced overall survival rate in patients with TSCC. In vitro studies confirmed that activation of β2‑AR can promote epithelial mesenchymal transition in TSCC by initiating an interleukin‑6/Stat3/Snail1 pathway. These results suggest that β2‑AR has an oncogenic role in TSCC and may be a potential therapeutic target in TSCC.