John Terry and Diego Costa grabbed the goals in an impressive display as the fourth-placed visitors were brushed aside at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea entered the game desperate to ensure they remained at the summit ahead of Manchester City's trip to West Brom later in the day, although West Ham - a far cry from the team Jose Mourinho famously claimed played "19th Century football" in a 0-0 draw last term - were expected to pose a significant threat.
That did not materialise in the opening period as Mourinho's men dominated, entering the break 1-0 ahead as Terry scored in back-to-back matches for the first time in a decade.
And even an added urgency could not spark a turnaround for West Ham after the restart, Costa firing home his 13th goal in 15 Premier League outings since moving to Chelsea.
Sam Allardyce's team never really threatened to get back into the game from there, although Morgan Amalfitano struck the post as they pressed late on.
Chelsea got off to a fast start and should have taken the lead in just the fifth minute. Oscar - brought in as the only change to Mourinho's XI - spurned a golden opportunity, blazing a volley over from six yards after Carl Jenkinson had failed to clear Willian's cross.
Gary Cahill was next to threaten when rising high in the area to head over from centre-back partner Terry's clever chipped pass.
Set-pieces were proving especially threatening, epitomised by Cahill forcing a superb save from Adrian after West Ham had failed to clear Cesc Fabregas' corner.
The visitors offered little, with the exception of the odd flash of pace from Enner Valencia, and they were again indebted to Adrian when the goalkeeper punched away Oscar's powerful strike.
The opening goal finally arrived in the 32nd minute, as Terry tapped home after Costa had flicked on Fabregas' corner.
Chelsea threatened three more times before the interval, Nemanja Matic seeing a 20-yard effort tipped around the post before Costa twice missed the target with good opportunities.
West Ham showed significantly more purpose at the start of the second period, although the hosts almost added a second when Adrian pushed away Eden Hazard's powerful curler.
Allardyce subsequently turned to Alex Song and Diafra Sakho, who were surprisingly left out as two of three West Ham changes.
Their introduction came in the wake of more uncharacteristic profligacy from Chelsea, Costa poking straight at Adrian from Fabregas' free-kick.
But the Spain international made no mistake next time a chance came his way, turning three defenders and powering a left-footed strike into the corner to extend the hosts' advantage.
Costa and Fabregas spurned further chances to add gloss to the scoreline, before Amalfitano fluffed the chance of setting up an exciting finish when his chip over Thibaut Courtois hit the woodwork.