Antimony irreversibly adsorbed on a carbon supported platinum electrode oxidizes glycerol selectively to dihydroxyacetone with a lower onset potential (ca. 150 mV) and a higher peak current density (ca. 170 %) compared to clean Pt/C. Pb, In, and Sn also promote the catalytic activity of glycerol oxidation, however the reaction pathway towards the primary alcohol oxidation remains unchanged. Higher surface coverage by adatoms on Pt/C generally increases the activity of glycerol oxidation.