BACKGROUND: It is unclear whether entecavir (ETV) and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) have different effects on hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) recurrence and death in patients receiving curative hepatectomy for hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related HCC. AIMS: The aim of this study was to compare the long-term efficacy of ETV and TDF in HCC recurrence and overall survival (OS) of patients after curative hepatectomy. METHODS: From January 2010 to December 2019, 20,572 patients with HCC who received hepatectomy were screened for study eligibility. Finally, a total of 219 consecutive patients treated with ETV ( = 146) or TDF ( = 73) after curative hepatectomy for HBV-related HCC of Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stage 0 or A were analyzed by propensity score matching (PSM) (2:1) analysis and competing risk analysis. HCC recurrence and OS of patients were compared between ETV and TDF groups. RESULT: After a median follow-up of 52.2 months, 81 patients (37.0%) had HCC recurrence, 33 (15.1%) died, and 5 (2.3%) received liver transplantation. TDF therapy was an independent protective factor for HCC recurrence compared with ETV therapy (HR, 1.687; 95% CI, 1.027-2.770, = 0.039); however, no difference in the risk of death or liver transplantation. Results were similar in competing risk analysis. We further found that TDF therapy was significantly associated with a lower risk of late recurrence (HR, 4.705; 95% CI, 1.763-12.558, = 0.002), but not in early recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: TDF therapy is associated with a significantly lower risk of HCC recurrence, especially of late recurrence, than ETV therapy among patients who undergo curative hepatectomy for HBV-related early-stage HCC.