A crystal structure analysis confirms the appropriateness of pentafluorophenyl salicylamine (1a) as a p-acceptor for anion-p interactions. Crystals of 1a·HCl show that the OH-group fixes the anion in a h 2 -type binding motif above the electron-deficient arene. Attempts to find some relevance for this weak intermolecular force in solution failed. Stronger CH-, NH-and OH-anion interactions are dominant over the weak anion-p interactions. Due to the hydrogen bonding, the non-fluorinated receptor exhibits the highest binding constants within this series.