In this research, activated carbon from mangosteen peel has been synthesized using sulfuric acid as an activator. The adsorption performance of the activated carbon was optimized using malachite green dye as absorbate. Malachite green dye waste is a toxic and non-biodegradable material that damages the environment. Optimization of adsorption processes was carried out using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) with a Box-Behnken Design (BBD). The synthesized activated carbon was characterized using FTIR and SEM instruments. The FTIR spectra confirmed the presence of a sulfonate group (-SO 3 H) in the activated carbon, indicating that the activation process using sulfuric acid was successful. SEM characterization shows that activated carbon has porous morphology. Optimization was carried out for three adsorption parameters, namely contact time (20, 60, and 120 min), adsorbent mass (0.005, 0.025, and 0.05 g), and initial concentration of malachite green solution (5, 50, and 100 mg•L -1 ). The concentration of the malachite green solution was determined using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer at the maximum wavelength of malachite green, 618 nm. The optimum of malachite green adsorption using mangosteen peel activated carbon was obtained at a contact time of 80 min, an adsorbent mass of 0.032 g, and malachite green initial concentration of 25 mg•L -1 , with a maximum removal percentage and maximum adsorption capacity of 93.66% and 19.345 mg•g -1 , respectively.