We describe an improved selective, differential, and cost-effective medium, XA medium, which contains
d
-arabinose, to facilitate the selective isolation of
Salmonella
spp. The sensitivity and the specificity of XA medium were compared to those of xylose lysine desoxycholate agar (XLD) using stock cultures and naturally contaminated food samples. XA medium and XLD were evaluated with a total of 82
Salmonella
and 69 non-
Salmonella
stock cultures. Of 82 strains of
Salmonella
spp. tested, 76 produced a characteristic black colony on XA medium and XLD. The remaining 6 strains belonged to
Salmonella enterica
serovars Berta (
n
= 1), Paratyphi A (
n
= 1), Gallinarum (
n
= 2), and Pullorum (
n
= 2). The sensitivities of XA medium and XLD were identical (92.7%).
Citrobacter freundii
(
n
= 21) and
Proteus mirabilis
(
n
= 21) stock cultures produced black colonies on XLD, whereas only 4 strains of
P. mirabilis
appeared as black colonies on XA medium. In the second phase of the study, a total of 180 food samples were cultured onto XA medium and XLD after selective enrichment. The sensitivities of XA medium and XLD were equal (100%), and a total of 6
Salmonella
strains were isolated from the 180 food samples. The specificity of XA medium (92.0%) was superior to that of XLD (73.0%), with a total of 14 and 47 false-positive results found on XA medium and XLD, respectively. On the basis of its good specificity, XA medium is useful for the isolation of
Salmonella
spp. from food samples.