Melanoma is an aggressive skin malignancy with a high mortality. Astrocyte elevated gene‐1 (AEG‐1), a downstream target of ras and c‐myc, has been implicated in the development of multiple tumors, yet its role in melanoma remains unclear. In the present study, the role of AEG‐1 in melanoma was explored through AEG‐1 silencing. Our results showed that silencing of AEG‐1 inhibited proliferation of melanoma cells and induced cell cycle arrest, accompanied by reduced levels of cyclinA, cyclinB, cyclinD1, cyclinE and cyclin dependent kinase 2. AEG‐1 silencing also induced apoptosis in melanoma cells and altered the levels of cleaved caspase‐3, Bax and Bcl‐2. Moreover, silencing of AEG‐1 suppressed migration and invasion of melanoma cells, and reduced the expressions and activities of MMP‐2 and MMP‐9. In addition, the activation of Wnt/β‐catenin signaling pathway in melanoma cells was inhibited by AEG‐1 silencing. Furthermore, in vivo experiments revealed that AEG‐1 silencing inhibited the growth of melanoma xenografts in nude mice. In summary, our study demonstrates an oncogenic role of AEG‐1 in melanoma and suggests that AEG‐1 may serve as a potential therapeutic target in the treatment of melanoma. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.