With environmental problems and resource scarcity, it is urgent to recover Platinum Group Metals (PGMs) from wastewater. In this study, poly(styrene-triethylammonium cation) (PIL-TEA) was synthesized, characterized, and used as adsorbent for Pt(II), Pt(IV), and Ir(IV) in both synthetic and real wastewater. Various isotherm and kinetic models were employed to analyze the adsorption process, revealing that it involves chemisorption, with internal diffusion being the crucial step. The different adsorption performances of PGMs can be attributed to factors such as electrostatic interaction, weak bonding, configuration, and electrostatic potential (ESP) between anions and cations. Notably, ESP complementarity dictates the actual adsorption performance order: Pt(II) > Pt(IV) > Ir(IV). The higher the degree of ESP complementarity, the stronger the adsorption tendency. Furthermore, the study reveals that localized triethylammonium exhibits remarkable adsorption efficiency for trace PGMs in wastewater, with adsorption capacities reaching 1.615, 1.354, and 1.010 mmol/g for Pt(II), Pt(IV), and Ir(IV) respectively. Overall, this research demonstrates the excellent adsorption performance of PIL-TEA for recovering PGMs from wastewater thanks to its exceptional ability to resist miscellaneous ion interference. It also provides valuable insights into the relationship between the adsorption performance and the structure− property interplay in wastewater.