A total of 164 fatty nitrogen compounds, consisting of quaternary ammonium compounds, alkylamines, N-alkyl-1, 3-propylene diamines, substituted amino hydroxystearonitriles, substituted amino hydroxystearyl amines, and nitrogen-containing surfactants, were screened for bacteriostatic, fungistatic, and algistatic activity. The most active compounds were dodecylamine and dodecylamine acetate. A number of compounds were very active against gram-negative bacteria. Most of the surfactants were virtually nontoxic to all of the test organisms.