In this work, removal of phenol from aqueous solutions by activated red mud was investigated. Scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy was used to observe the morphology and surface components of activated red mud, respectively. The effects of various parameters on the removal efficiency were studied, such as contact time, pH, initial phenol concentration, and adsorbent dosage. The removal percentage of phenol was initially increased, as the solution pH increased from 3 to 7, and then decreased above neutral pH. The removal percentage of phenol was decreased by increasing the initial phenol concentrations. Adsorption results show that equilibrium data follow the Freundlich isotherm, and kinetic data was well described by a pseudo-second-order kinetic model. Experimental results show that the activated red mud can be used to treat aqueous solutions containing phenol, as a low cost adsorbent with high efficiency.