Orange peel (OP) exhibits a sorption capacity towards anionic dyes such as reactive blue 19 (RB19). Cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as a cationic surfactant was used to modify the surface nature of OP to enhance its adsorption capacity for anionic dyes from an aqueous solution. Four adsorbents were investigated: the OP, sodium hydroxide-treated OP (SOP), CTAB-modified OP and CTAB-modified SOP. The physical and chemical properties of these sorbents were determined using nitrogen adsorption at 77 K and by scanning electron microscope and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy techniques. The adsorption of the RB19 dye was assessed with these sorbents at different solution pH levels and temperatures. The effect of the contact time was considered to determine the order and rate constants of the adsorption process. The adsorption data were analyzed considering the Freundlich, Langmuir, Elovich and Tempkin models. The adsorption of RB19 by the assessed sorbents is of the chemisorption type following pseudo-first-order kinetics. CTAB modification brought about a significant increase in RB19 adsorption, which was ascribed to the grafting of the sorbent with a cationic surfactant.