Background The CELF gene family is a set of highly conserved genes that encode a family of RNA-binding proteins in human tissues and participate in posttranscriptional modifications. The CELF gene family has been reported to be associated with a variety of cancers, including lung cancer, liver cancer and colorectal cancer. However, the expression, function and clinical relevance of CELF family members in glioma remain uncertain because of the lack of relevant studies. Materials & methods Bioinformatics analysis was used to determine the prognostic value and immune infiltration associations of CELF gene family members in glioma. Transcription and survival data related to CELF gene family members in glioma patients were obtained from the Oncomine, Gene Expression Profiling Interactive Analysis (GEPIA) and cBioPortal databases. Results The results revealed that compared to that in normal tissues, the expression of CELF2-6 was notably lower but that of CELF1 was higher in glioma tissues. Survival analysis using the GEPIA database revealed that high transcript levels of CELF1 were associated with unfavourable OS in all patients with LGG. Conversely, high CELF3/4/5 levels predicted favourable OS in these patients. Conclusion This study implied that CELF1/3/4/5 are new prognostic markers and potential therapeutic targets for LGG.