Background: The pathogenesis of oral squamous cell carcinoma is very complex and prognostic markers are difficult to find in these carcinomas of which the different subtypes have varying malignant potential. The study was conducted to examine the cellular distribution of MCM-2 in oral squamous cell carcinoma and their value to predict lymph node metastasis. Materials and methods: Thirty paraffin blocks of OSCC (10 well differentiated, 10 moderately differentiated and 10 poorly differentiated) were immunohistochemically stained with MCM-2 antibody. ANOVA and Tukey's tests were used for the statistical analysis, then correlation was performed between lymph node status and the mean percentage of MCM-2 expression. Results: All cases of OSCC express MCM-2 with variable cellular localization. There was a significant difference in the expression of MCM-2 between the different grades of OSCC cases. Using linear correlation analysis, a positive correlation was noted between the percentage of cases with positive lymph node metastasis and the mean area percentage of MCM-2 expression. Conclusions: Oral squamous cell carcinomas express MCM-2 with variable levels and cellular localization, consisting an important marker of biological behavior in these tumors. Further study with large sample size is recommended to assess their value in prediction of lymph node metastasis.