A series of new halo-substituted aroylhydrazones have been prepared and structurally characterized by elemental analysis, H-1 NMR, C-13 NMR, and IR spectra, and single crystal X-ray diffraction. The compounds were evaluated for their antibacterial (Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas fluorescence) and antifungal (Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger) activities by the MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) method. Among the tested compounds, N'-(2-chloro-5-nitrobenzylidene)-2-fluorobenzohydrazide showed the most effective antimicrobial activity with minimum inhibitory concentration values of 0.82, 2.5, 1.7, 15.2, and 37.5 mu g mL(-1) against B. subtilis, S. aureus, E. coli, P. fluorescence, and C. albicans, respectively. The biological assay indicated that the presence of the electron-withdrawing groups in the aroylhydrazones improved their antimicrobial activities.