A magnetic separable sulfonic acid catalyst was prepared and applied for the synthesis of 3,6-di(pyridin-3-yl)-1H-pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridine-5-carbonitriles via three-component reaction of 1-phenyl-3-(pyridin-3-yl)-1H-pyrazol-5-amine, β-ketonitrile and aldehydes in DES.