The presence of natural radioactivity and radon exhalation from building materials contribute to the radiation dose received by human. So, it is essential to evaluate the activity levels of the primordial radionuclides (238 U, 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K) present in the building materials for the assessment of natural radiation dose. Cement is one of the major component of the building materials and is used on a large scale. In the present study, the commercially available cement samples of fifteen different brands were used to study the radon exhalation rate and activity concentration of 238 U, 226 Ra, 232 Th and 40 K nuclides. The radon exhalation rate was measured using the can technique, while the concentration of radionuclides content was determined by using gamma ray spectroscopy. The radon exhalation rate from different brands of cements was found in the range from 1.56 to 13.1 mBqkg À1 h À1 with a mean value of 5.27 mBqkg À1 h À1. The specific activity of uranium was found in the range 45.3e218.9 Bqkg À1 with a mean value of 111.2 Bqkg À1 ; 226 Ra from 20.3 to 60.1 Bqkg À1 with a mean value of 35.8 Bqkg À1 ; 232 Th from 18.8 to 60.1 Bqkg À1 with a mean value of 33.2 Bqkg À1 and 40 K varied from 160.9 to 248.1 Bqkg À1 with a mean value of 199.1 Bqkg À1. The radiological parameters e radium equivalent activity, absorbed dose rate, annual effective dose, external hazard index, internal hazard index, gamma activity index and alpha index were also evaluated to assess the potential radiological hazard associated with these cement samples. Correlation coefficients for the different radionuclides have been evaluated and studied.