Thiosalicylic acid (TSA)-modified Amberlite XAD-2 (AXAD-2) was synthesized by coupling TSA with the support matrix AXAD-2 through an azo spacer. The resulting chelating resin was characterized by elemental analyses, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and infrared spectra. The newly designed resin quantitatively sorbs Cd^II, Co^II, Cu^II, Fe^III, Ni^II and Zn^II at pH 3.5–7.0 when the flow rate is maintained between 2 and 4 ml min⁻¹. The HCl or HNO₃ (2 mol l⁻¹) instantaneously elutes all the metal ions. The sorption capacity is 197.5, 106.9, 214.0, 66.2, 309.9 and 47.4 μmol g⁻¹ of the resin for cadmium, cobalt, copper, iron, nickel and zinc, respectively, whereas their preconcentration factor is between 180–400. The breakthrough volume of HCl or HNO₃ for elution of these metal ions was found to be 4–8 ml. The limit of detection (LOD) for Cd^II, Co^II, Cu^II, Fe^III, Ni^II and Zn^II was 0.48, 0.20, 4.05, 0.98, 1.28 and 3.94 μg l⁻¹, respectively, and the limit of quantification (LOQ) was found to be 0.51, 0.29, 4.49, 1.43, 1.58 and 4.46 μg l⁻¹, respectively. The loading half time, t_1/2, for the cations was found to be less than 2.0 min, except for nickel for which the value was 13.1 min. The determination of each of these six cations is possible in the presence of other five, if their concentration is up to 4 times. All six metals were determined in river water (RSD ≈ 0.7–7.7%) and tap water samples (RSD ≈ 0.3–5.7%). The estimation of Co was made in the samples of multivitamin tablets (RSD <2.3%). The results agree with those quoted by manufacturers.