Constructed wetland-microbial fuel cells (CW-MFC) can be the future of sustainable wastewater management. This study developed a multistage CW-MFC based on the halophyte Juncus ridigus for treating brackish sewage. Its treatment efficiency was compared with a multistage constructed wetland without electrodes (CW) and a control (C), which had neither electrodes nor plants. The CW-MFC showed significantly higher removal efficiency for COD, BOD, PO43--P, NH4+-N, NO2–-N, and NO3–-N, with removal efficiency of 81 %, 88 %, 83.58 %, 90.75 %, 80.96 %, and 78.75 %, respectively. Up to a 40.6 % decrease in salinity was observed in CW-MFC, followed by CW and C. Plant absorption and electrode adsorption were the primary mechanisms for removing major salt-contributing ions and elements like Cl-, SO42-, Na, Mg, and Ca. It was further confirmed by their increased deposits in plant tissues and electrodes, as revealed by SEM-EDX. A second-order kinetic model was used to investigate the efficiency of the CW-MFC system regarding pollutant removal. CW-MFC efficiently removed several emerging contaminants from sewage, including phenol, 3,5-bis(1,1-dimethyl ethyl)-, which was also found to be accumulated in the shoots of J. ridigus. Plants in CW experienced stress, as evidenced by lower biomass (47.47 % lower than CW-MFC) and decreased chlorophyll content (20 %), whereas in CW-MFC, they were extremely healthy. Interestingly, CW-MFC had a higher bacterial population than CW, which indicates increased microbial activity. CW-MFC was found to be the most efficient treatment system as it alleviated plant stress and increased bioaccumulation and microbial activity for treating brackish sewage.