Several Mn-II compounds with phenylcyanamido ligands have been synthesized and characterized by means of single-crystal X-ray structural determination. The reported compounds show a wide variety of nuclearity from mononuclear and dinuclear systems to 1D chains and 2D networks in which X-phenylcyanamide (X-pcyd) anions act as the bridging ligand. Mononuclear compound [Mn(H2O)(2)(4-bzpy)(2)(3-Cl-pcyd)(2)] (1) crystallizes in the monoclinic system, P2(1)/a space group, dinuclear compounds (mu(1,3)-3-Cl-pcyd)(2)[Mn(2,2'-bpy)(3-Cl-pcyd)(MeOH)](2) (2) and (mu(1,3)-3-Cl-pcyd)(2)[Mn(2,2'-bpy)(3-Cl-pcyd)(EtOH)](2) (3) crystallize in the triclinic system, P (1) over bar space group, 1D chain {(mu(1,3)-4-Cl-pcyd)(2)[Mn(2,2'-bpy)]}(n) (4) crystallizes in the monoclinic system, /2/a space group, and 2D network [Mn(mu-4,4'-bpy)(u(1,3)-3-F-pcyd)(2)](n) (5) crystallizes in the monoclinic system, C2 space group. Susceptibility measurements on compounds 2-4 reveal moderate antiferromagnetic coupling in all cases. MO calculations have been made to elucidate the main factors that control the superexchange pathway for this kind of ligand. Comparison of their magnetic behavior with that of related ligands such as azido and dicyanamido is reported.