Background and Objectives There is no international consensus for management of early‐stage cervical cancer (ESCC). This study aimed to retrospectively investigate disease‐free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients with ESCC according to the therapeutic strategy used, surgery alone versus preoperative radiation following by surgery. Methods Data were retrospectively collected from 1998 to 2015 using the Gynecological Cancer Registry of the Côte d'Or. The inclusion criteria were FIGO 2018 ≤ IB2; squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma or adenosquamous type. Survival curves were compared using the log‐rank test. Results One hundred twenty‐six patients were included. Median survival was 90 months. There was no significant difference in DFS (HR = 0.91, 95%CI 0.32–2.53, p = 0.858) or in OS between surgery alone versus preoperative radiation following by surgery (HR = 0.97, 95%CI 0.31–2.99, p = 0.961). In the subgroup of patients with stage ≥IB1, there was no significant difference in DFS (HR = 3.26, p = 0.2) or in OS (HR = 3.87, p = 0.2). Conclusion Our study did not identify any difference in survival according to the treatment strategy. Preoperative radiation following by surgery can be an alternative to surgery alone for ESCC.