Objective: To determine the risk factors for early complications (during or in early period after operation) of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC), so as to provide warning signs for preventing such incidents. Methods: The records of 16 032 LC cases from July 2000 to August 2014 were reviewed. The general clinical variables and incidence of early complications were analyzed, and the suspicious factors for early complications were screened by univariate analysis and then verified by multivariate analysis. Results: Of the 16 032 patients, the average age was (56.7±21.3) years, male-to-female ratio was 1:1.87, 14 101 cases (88.0%) underwent elective LC and 1 931 (12.0%) cases underwent emergency LC and early complications occurred in 1 420 cases (8.9%). Univariate analysis suggested that sex, inflammatory status of the gallbladder, obesity, history of upper abdominal surgery, emergency LC, operative duration, and number of LC operations the surgeon had performed were possible risk factors associated with the occurrence of early complications of LC (P<0.05); Multivariable analysis revealed that male gender (OR=10.012, P=0.002), acute cholecystitis (OR=2.510, P=0.010), BMI≥25 kg/m2 (OR= 3.105, P=0.023), history of upper abdominal surgery (OR=7.882, P=0.030) and operative duration ≥60 min (OR=8.634, P=0.001) were independent risk factors for occurrence of early complications of LC. Conclusion: Males, acute cholecystitis, obesity, history of upper abdominal surgery, and long operative time are independent risk factors for early complications of LC, and for patients with these factors, adequate pre- and postoperative measures should be taken to prevent the occurrence of these events.