Objective To investigate the effect of fibroblast growth factor receptor like 1 (FGFRL1) overexpression on the biological behavior of HCT116 human colon cancer cell line. Methods A recombinant plasmid, named as pcDNA3.1-FGFRL1 which expresses FGFRL1 in mammal cells, was constructed. After a transfection of HCT116 cells with pcDNA3.1-FGFRL1, the stable expression cell line was obtained via continual selection with G418, and FGFRL1 expression was analyzed by real time quantitative PCR and Western blotting. In the following experiment, cells were divided into three groups: the blank group (untreated HCT116 cells), the negative group (empty vector stably transfected cells) and the experience group (pcDNA3.1-FGFRL1 stably transfected cells). Cell proliferation was detected by CCK-8 assay. Cell migration ability was analyzed with TranswellTM assay and their apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry. Results FGFRL1 mRNA and protein levels increased significantly in FGFRL1 overexpression group. After the overexpression of FGFRL1, proliferation and migration of HCT116 cells dropped significantly, while their apoptosis increased significantly. Conclusion Overexpression of FGFRL1 inhibits the proliferation and migration of colon cancer HCT116 cells and promotes their apoptosis.