Summary Background  Hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) is the gold standard for assessing the presence and the severity of portal hypertension (PHT). Liver stiffness measurement (LSM) is a non‐invasive method for liver fibrosis assessment. Aims  To assess the relationship between LSM and HVPG in patients with compensated cirrhosis related to hepatitis C virus (HCV) or alcohol and to define the performance and the best cut‐off of LSM for the diagnosis of PHT in these patients. Methods  Between January 2004 and September 2006, we studied all the consecutive patients with compensated HCV or alcohol‐related‐cirrhosis referred for transjugular liver biopsy with HVPG measurement and LSM performed the same day. Results  Ninety‐two patients were eligible, 44 had HCV related‐cirrhosis and 48 alcoholic cirrhosis. LSM was positively correlated to HVPG in both groups. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the diagnosis of significant PHT was 0.76 ± 0.07 in HCV patients (best cut‐off at 20.5 kPa) and 0.94 ± 0.03 (best cut‐off at 34.9 kPa) in alcoholic patients. Conclusions  Liver stiffness measurement and HVPG were significantly correlated in patients with compensated cirrhosis because of HCV infection or alcohol. LSM could predict significant PHT in both these groups of patients with a higher cut‐off and a better performance in alcoholic patients.