Mixed ion-exchange resins packed microbial desalination cell (R-MDC) could stabilize the internal resistance, however, the impacts of multiple ions on R-MDC performance was unclear. This study investigated the desalination performance, multiple ions migration behaviors and their impacts on R-MDCs fed with salt solution containing multiple anions and cations. Results showed that R-MDC removed multiple anions better than multiple cations with desalination efficiency of 99% (effluent conductivity <0.05 ms/cm) at hydraulic retention time of 50 h. Competitive migration order was SO42- > NO3- > Cl- for anions and Ca2+ approximate to Mg2+ > NH4+ > Na+ for cations, jointly affected by both their molar conductivity and exchange selectivity on resins. After long-term operation, the existence of higher concentration Ca2+ and Mg2+ caused the electric conductivity of mixed resins decrease and scaling on the surface of cation-exchange membrane adjoined with cathode chamber, suggesting that R-MDC would be more suitable for desalination of water with lower hardness. (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.