Ornithine decarboxylase antizyme 1 (OAZ1) is an antizyme targeting ornithine decarboxylase for degradation, subsequently inhibiting polyamine production to prevent cell proliferation. OAZ1 is also involved in other major cellular events, including differentiation and apoptosis. Recent studies have shown that OAZ1 has tumor suppressor activities and its effects on cell proliferation and differentiation have been reported in several cancer cell lines. To explore the role of OAZ1 in human oral cancer, the effects of OAZ1 were studied on the proliferation and differentiation of human malignant oral cancer cell line, SCC15. MTT assay and flow cytometry analysis showed that stable OAZ1 expression in SCC15 significantly inhibited cell proliferation (P<0.001) and induced G0/G1 arrest with the G1‑phase cells increased from 55.83 to 65.26%. Morphological observation revealed the increased formation of epithelial islands. Further results from quantitative reverse transcription‑polymerase chain reaction and western blot analysis proved the upregulation of several terminal differentiation marker genes (K10, FLG and LOR) in OAZ1‑expressed SCC15 cells. To elucidate the possible mechanism of LOR upregulation by OAZ1, further experiments were performed and it was found that the OAZ1 expression inhibited Smad nuclear interacting protein 1 (SNIP1) at the protein level and RNA interference of SNIP1 in SCC15 cells, which increased the expression of LOR. These results show that OAZ1 simultaneously inhibits the proliferation and induces the differentiation of oral cancer cells in humans. The effects on cellular differentiation depend partly on the degradation of SNIP1.