Viruses are multivalent particles that attach to cells through one or more bonds between viral attachment proteins (VAP) and specific cellular receptors. Three modes of virus binding are presented that can explain the diversity in binding data observed among viruses. They are based on multivalency of attachment and spatial versus receptor saturation effects which are easily distinguished based upon simple criteria. Mode 1 involves only monovalent virus/receptor binding. Modes 2 and 3 involve multivalent bonds between the virus and cell; however, in mode 3 space on the cell surface becomes saturated before receptors. A model is developed for viral attachment that accounts for nonspecific binding, receptor/virus interactions, and spatial saturation effects. The model can describe each mode in different limits and can be applied to virus binding data to extract key physical information such as receptor number and affinity. These values are used to postulate the type of VAP/receptor interaction involved and to predict binding at different parameter values. For the mode 2 binding of Adenovirus 2, the model predicts a receptor number of 4-15 x 10(3) on HeLa cells and an affinity of 2-6 x 10(7) M-1 which closely approximate experimental estimates. For the binding of three, broad-host-range, enveloped viruses, Semliki Forest virus, Vesicular Stomatitis virus, and the baculovirus, Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus, the model predicts receptor numbers of 10(5) or greater and affinities in the range of 10(4) to 10(5) M-1. These values are indicative of a VAP/oligosaccharide interaction which has been documented for a number of other viruses. Experimental evidence is presented that is the first to demonstrate that baculovirus binding is mediated by a cell surface receptor.