We studied the expression level of FOXJ1 in bladder epithelial carcinoma and its relation to clinical features and tumor recurrence. From January 2014 to June 2015, 66 patients with bladder epithelial carcinoma were enrolled in this study and their tumor and para-carcinoma tissue samples were collected. FOXJ1 positive expression rate was evaluated using immunohistochemical staining, and FOXJ1 mRNA expression level was measured by RT-PCR. RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry results showed that FOXJ1 expression level in tumor samples was significantly lower than that in para-carcinoma tissue samples. The median survival time in patients with positive expression of FOXJ1 was significantly longer than that of patients with negative expression of FOXJ1. We also showed that FOXJ1 expression level was negatively correlated with neoplasm staging and tumor recurrence rate. We concluded that FOXJ1 was expressed in low quantities in bladder epithelial carcinoma, which was closely correlated with the biological characteristics of the tumor. FOXJ1 expression presents a promising application prospect for further exploration of the specific biological mechanism of FOXJ1 in regulating the occurrence and development of bladder epithelial carcinoma. FOXJ1 may be used as a new marker for early diagnosis and prediction of recurrence.