alpha-Arbutin is a glycosylated hydroquinone (HQ) which has inhibitory function against tyrosinase. The aim of present study is to develop an efficient and inexpensive method for the production of alpha-arbutin by using Xanthomonas maltophilia BT-112 as a biocatalyst. HQ substrate for the bioconvers ion as glucosyl acceptor, was immobilized on different macroporous resins to reduce its toxic effect on the cells, and the optimal reaction conditions for alpha-arbutin synthesis were investigated. The research results indicated that H107 resin offered the best adsorption capacity for HQ than other resins. When immobilized hydroquinone (IMHQ) was applied, the maximal HQ tolerance of cells and yield of alpha-arbutin were 254 mM and 64.7 g L-1 respectively. The alpha-arbutin productivity (0.90 g L-1 h(-1)) was 526% higher than that of the control (free HQ) in 72 h reaction and the fermentation broth maintained its full activity for almost three consecutive batch reactions. Additionally, the product was one-step isolated and identified as alpha-arbutin by C-13 NMR and H-1 NMR analysis. In conclusion, the results in this work provide a cost-effective method for the production of alpha-arbutin. (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd.