In a study of links between group acceptance and friendship among children in elementary school, 278 third- through sixth-graders, nearly evenly divided by sex, were assessed with measures of level of peer acceptance, primary and secondary friendship, friendship quality, loneliness, and social dissatisfaction. Findings suggested that the distinction between group acceptance and friendship is meaningful. Although fewer children with low degrees of acceptance have friends in comparison to other children, marginal group status does not preclude the possibility of a reciprocal friendship. Having a friend and the quality of the friendship appear to make contributions to the prediction of loneliness over and above the sizable contribution of level of acceptance. Problematic group acceptance is indicative of problems in dyadic friendship adjustment. The quality of children's friendships drops off as level of acceptance decreases. While it is clear that friendship and acceptance domains are linked, the reason why they are linked and what difference the linkage makes remain unknown. It is concluded that reaching an understanding of linkages between group acceptance and children's friendship success is an important research task with implications for intervention with children at risk due to poor peer relations. (RH)