Radio frequency (RF) power, treatment time and cooling water temperature affect inactivation of Salmonella Typhimurium in shell eggs and internal quality. Eggs were processed using 40.68 MHz RF at 30-45 W, 2.5-8 min and 30-38 degrees C, followed by hot water (HW) treatment at 56.7 degrees C for 15 min. Five conditions achieved > 5 log reduction of Salmonella without observable quality change. Analyses of the longest (8 min at 30 W and 30 degrees C) and shortest (4.5 min at 35 W and 38 degrees C) treatments indicated that combined RF/HW treatments significantly (P < 0.05) preserved quality better than HW pasteurization (56.7 degrees C for 60 min). No significant (P >= 0.05) difference in egg quality was observed between the longest and shortest treatment, except that the shortest resulted in greater albumen turbidity. As the longest treatment required 78% more time and 47% more energy than the shortest, industry may wish to use the shortest RF treatment time.