Highlights Eleven indanoyl derivatives as potential elicitors were synthesized and characterized. Accumulation of nine isoflavonoid phytoalexins in two common bean ( P. vulgaris L.) cultivars grown in Colombia was analyzed. Dose-response and time-course experiments were performed on cotyledons and hypocotyls-roots of common bean treated with the potential elicitors. Application of indanoyl-type elicitors increased the concentration of isoflavonoids in tissues of common bean. Accumulation of isoflavonoid phytoalexins was dependent on the cultivar, the tissue type, the elicitor structure and the post-induction time.