Two β-cyclodextrin (β-CD)-based polymers were synthesized using 4,4′-methylene-bis-phenyldiisocyanate (MDI) or hexamethylenediisocyanate (HMDI) as a cross linking agent in dimethylformamide and used as sorbents for the removal of azo dyes (Evans Blue and Chicago Sky Blue), as well as aromatic amines (benzidine, p-chloroaniline and α-naphthalamine) from aqueous solutions. The sorption experiments were carried out by using batch-wise procedure involving the determination of pH effect, sorbate concentration and contact time. Moreover, from the equation isotherms such as Langmuir and Freundlich were successfully applied to model the experimental data. From the results polymer 2 was found to be a better sorbent for both azo dyes and the aromatic amines as compared to polymer 1 as proved by Langmuir isotherm model. The proposed sorption mechanism involved several kinds of interactions: physical adsorption, hydrogen bonding and formation of an inclusion complex due to the β-CD molecules through host-guest interactions. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.