Six microsatellite loci were isolated from the bruchid Acanthoscelides obtectus Say (Coleoptera: Bruchidae). Each locus was polymorphic, with the number of alleles ranging from 3 to 18. We found high levels of within-population variation at most loci, with heterozygosities ranging from 0 to 0.75. Cross-species amplification of these loci was tested in two other species of the genus Acanthoscelides, A. obvelatus Bridwell and A. argillaceus Sharp.