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Among cationic dyes, malachite green (MG) is commonly used for dying purposes and also as an inhibitor in aquaculture, food, health, and chemical industries due to its cytotoxic effects. Therefore, MG removal is essential to keep the ecosystem and human health safety. Adsorption is a viable and versatile option and exploring efficient adsorbents have high priority. Herein, MOF-5 and aminated corn Stover reduced graphene oxide (ACS-RGO) of typical adsorbents of metal–organic-frameworks (MOFs) and carbon-based classes were studied for MG removal. MOF-5 and ACS-RGO had a specific surface area and total pore volume of 507.4 and 389.0 m2/g, and 0.271 cm3/g and 0.273 cm3/g, respectively. ACS-RGO was superior for MG adsorption and the kinetic rate coefficient for ACS-RGO was ~ 7.2 times compared to MOF-5. For ACS-RGO, MG removal remained high (> 94%) in a wide range of pH. However, dye removal was pH-dependent for MOF-5 and increased from ~ 32% to ~ 67% by increasing pH from 4 to 12. Increasing dye concentration from 25 mg/L to 100 mg/L decreased adsorption by MOF-5 and ACS-RGO for ~ 30% and 7%, respectively. Dye removal was evident in a few tens of seconds after adding ACS-RGO at doses above 0.5 g/L. A significant loss of 46% in adsorption was observed by decreasing MOF-5 mass from 1 to 0.1 g/L. ACS-RGO removed MG in multilayer with an exceptional adsorption capacity of 1088.27 mg/g. In conclusion, ACS-RGO, and MOF-5 showed promising kinetic rates and adsorption capacities toward MG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]