Glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) gene Ile105Val polymorphism has been suggested to be involved in the development of cancer. However, the results from the studies regarding the association between GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma risk have been inconsistent. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis to investigate the association. Published literature from PubMed, Chinese Biomedical Literature, and Wanfang databases was searched for eligible publications. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) with 95 % confidence intervals (95 %CIs) were calculated using random- or fixed-effects model. Six studies with a total of 1,843 participants were finally included into this meta-analysis. The results suggested there was no association between GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma risk under all genetic models (for ValVal vs. IleIle, OR = 0.79, 95 %CI 0.48-1.29, P = 0.341; for IleVal vs. IleIle, OR = 1.05, 95 %CI 0.84-1.30, P = 0.678; for the dominant model, OR = 0.91, 95 %CI 0.68-1.20, P = 0.498; and for the recessive model, OR = 0.76, 95 %CI 0.47-1.24, P = 0.269). Subgroup analyses by ethnicity showed there was also no association between GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma risk in Asians under all genetic models (All P values were more than 0.05), but GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphism was associated with decreased risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in European under the recessive model (ValVal vs. IleVal/IleIle) (OR = 0.44, 95 %CI 0.20-0.98, P = 0.044). In conclusion, the meta-analysis suggests that there is little evidence for the association between GSTP1 Ile105Val polymorphism and hepatocellular carcinoma risk. However, more well-designed studies are needed to further assess this association.