Clearing the water and wastewater from toxic heavy metals has received attentions from many researchers and scientists. In this study, poly(1-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone-co-sodium acrylate), P(VP-SA), was prepared by gamma radiation-induced copolymerization of VP and SA and utilized for the effective removal of cobalt(II), nickel(II), and copper(II) from their aqueous solutions. Effect of comonomer composition and concentration besides the adsorbed dose on the conversion percentage and the reduced viscosity was studied. The formed copolymer was characterized using Fourier transform infrared and gel permeation chromatography analysis, and the thermal stability was examined using thermogravimetric analysis. The influence of the adsorption conditions such as contact time, pH, copolymer concentration, and initial metal ion concentration on the metal ion binding capacity was tested. Pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and intraparticle diffusion adsorption models were used to explain the adsorption kinetics. Finally, the equilibrium adsorption data fitted well with Langmuir isotherm model, and the maximum adsorption amounts on P(VP-SA) copolymer calculated by Langmuir equation were 425.60, 93.01 and 450.81mgg(-1) for Cu+2, Ni+2, and Co+2, respectively.