The paper presents the results of the AeroCom Phase II direct aerosol effect (DAE) experiment, where 16 global aerosol models simulate changes in aerosol distribution over the industrial era. The models estimate the radiative forcing (RF) of anthropogenic DAE, considering sulphate, black carbon (BC), and organic aerosols (OA) from fossil fuel, biofuel, and biomass burning emissions. Several models also simulate the DAE of anthropogenic nitrate and secondary organic aerosols (SOA). The mean RF of the total DAE from all models ranges from -0.58 to -0.02 Wm^-2, with a mean of -0.27 Wm^-2. After accounting for missing aerosol components and adjusting the time period to 1750-2010, the mean RF for the DAE is -0.35 Wm^-2. Compared to AeroCom Phase I, the current study shows similar spreads in total DAE and aerosol component RF, but with stronger negative RF for the total DAE and stronger positive RF for BC from fossil fuel and biofuel emissions. The relationship between strong positive BC RF and strong negative sulphate or OA RF is noted, leading to smaller uncertainty in the total RF compared to the sum of individual aerosol components. The spread in results for individual aerosol components is substantial, influenced by differences in burden, mass extinction coefficient (MEC), and normalized RF with respect to aerosol optical depth (AOD).The paper presents the results of the AeroCom Phase II direct aerosol effect (DAE) experiment, where 16 global aerosol models simulate changes in aerosol distribution over the industrial era. The models estimate the radiative forcing (RF) of anthropogenic DAE, considering sulphate, black carbon (BC), and organic aerosols (OA) from fossil fuel, biofuel, and biomass burning emissions. Several models also simulate the DAE of anthropogenic nitrate and secondary organic aerosols (SOA). The mean RF of the total DAE from all models ranges from -0.58 to -0.02 Wm^-2, with a mean of -0.27 Wm^-2. After accounting for missing aerosol components and adjusting the time period to 1750-2010, the mean RF for the DAE is -0.35 Wm^-2. Compared to AeroCom Phase I, the current study shows similar spreads in total DAE and aerosol component RF, but with stronger negative RF for the total DAE and stronger positive RF for BC from fossil fuel and biofuel emissions. The relationship between strong positive BC RF and strong negative sulphate or OA RF is noted, leading to smaller uncertainty in the total RF compared to the sum of individual aerosol components. The spread in results for individual aerosol components is substantial, influenced by differences in burden, mass extinction coefficient (MEC), and normalized RF with respect to aerosol optical depth (AOD).