In tool condition monitoring systems, parameters should be set to a certain threshold. In many cases, however, the threshold is dependent on cutting conditions, especially the radial immersion ratio. In this presented is a method of on-line estimation of the radial immersion ratio in face milling. When a tooth finishes sweeping, a sudden drop of cutting force occurs. The force drop is equal to the cutting force that acting on a tooth at the swept angle of cut and can be acquired from cutting force signals in feed and cross-feed directions. Average cutting force per tooth period can also be calculated from cutting force signals in two directions. The ratio to cutting forces in two directions acting on a tooth at a certain swept angle of cut and the ratio of average cutting forces in two directions per tooth period are functions of the swept angle of cut and the ratio of radial to tangential cutting forces. Using these parameters, the radial immersion ratio is estimated. Various experiments are performed to verify the proposed method. The results show that the radial immersion ratio can be estimated by this method regardless of other cutting conditions.