A simple and highly selective electrochemical sensor based on a polyfurfural film modified glassy carbon electrode was developed for simultaneous detection of nitrophenol isomers. The modified electrode exhibited remarkable electrocatalytic activity towards the reduction of nitro. The redox peaks for each nitrophenol isomer can be well resolved and their simultaneous determination was achieved. Under optimal conditions, the proposed sensor had wider linear ranges of 5-100 mu mol L-1, 0.75-100 mu mol L-1 and 0.75-100 mu mol L-1 with lower detection limits of 0.3, 0.05 and 0.041 mu mol L-1 for o-nitrophenol, m-nitrophenol and p-nitrophenol, respectively. The modified electrode also showed promising selectivity, stability and reproducibility. Moreover, the proposed sensor can be applied to simultaneous determination of nitrophenol isomers in real water samples, giving satisfactory recoveries. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.