A simple and sensitive method for preconcentration and determination of Cd²⁺, Cu²⁺, Mn²⁺, Pb²⁺ and Zn²⁺ by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer was developed. The method is based on the sorption of the studied elements as metal-dithizone complexes (M-DZ) on activated carbon (AC). The effect of various parameters (pH, shaking time, AC amount, ligand concentrations, eluent concentration, and solution volume) on quantitative sorption of metal-dithizone chelates using AC was investigated. The studied elements were eluted from AC simply with HNO₃ acid. The results revealed that the optimum pH values for the sorption were 4 for Cu²⁺, 6 for Zn²⁺, 8 for Pb²⁺ and 10 for Cd²⁺ and Mn²⁺; shaking time was 10 min for Mn²⁺ and Pb²⁺, 30 min for Cu²⁺ and Zn²⁺ and 50 min for Cd²⁺; AC amount was 0.2 g for Zn²⁺, 0.3 g for Cd²⁺, 0.5 g for Pb²⁺, 0.6 g for Mn²⁺ and 0.8 g for Cu²⁺; metal: ligand ratio was found to be (1:2 ratio), and eluent concentration used was 1 mol L^-1 for Cd²⁺ and Mn²⁺, 2 mol L^-1 for Zn²⁺ and 4 mol L^-1 for Cu²⁺ and Pb²⁺. The method can be applied with a preconcentration factor of 20 for Cd²⁺, and 40 for Cu²⁺, Mn²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Zn^2+. Preconcentration from various water samples showed recovery in the range 95-108 %, confirming the effectiveness and precision of the solid-phase method developed using activated carbon for enrichment of metals examined.