Two tripodal ligands, each derived from 1,1,1-tris(hydroxymethyl)ethane and terminated respectively by 4-pyridyl (L 1 ) and 2-pyridyl groups (L 2 ), have been synthesised. Competitive seven-metal extraction studies (H 2 O/CHCl 3 ) incorporating equal concentrations of cobalt(II), nickel(II), copper(II), zinc(II), silver(I), cadmium(II), and lead(II) in the aqueous phase and L 1 or L 2 in the organic phase showed selective extraction of silver(I) in each case. A parallel solvent extraction experiment involving a related tripodal tris-pyridyl ligand (L 3 ) based on a 1,3,5-substituted aryl ring scaffold and incorporating thioether sulfurs in each tripod arm also showed extraction selectivity for silver(I); extraction efficiencies towards this metal ion fall in the order L 3 . L 1 . L 2 . Physical data are in accord with L 1 forming a capsule-like complex of type [Ag 3 L 1 2 ] 3þ in which silver ions link pairs of pyridyl groups from different ligands. In contrast, L 2 yields a complex of type [Ag 2 L 2 (NO) 3 ] n whose X-ray structure showed it to be a two-dimensional coordination polymer in which the three pyridyl donors of each L 2 coordinate to three silver(I) centres, two of which are crystallographically distinct, with the centres also bonded to bidentate and/or bridging bidentate nitrato groups.