Aerogel composite materials consisting of MoS2 and reduced graphite oxide (rGO) are synthesized by a facile general hydrothermal method, where GO is utilized as a template and provides a novel substrate for the nucleation and subsequent growth of MoS2. These MoS2/rGO hybrid nanostructures exhibit three-dimensional (3D) leaf -like morphology, and show excellent electrocatalytic activities of hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), with a low overpotential of approximately 105 mV, a small Tafel slope of 51 mV/dec and a large exchange, current density (j(0)) of 3.28 x 10(-5) A/cm(2). The superior electrochemical performance should be attributed to the 3D porous MoS2/rGO hybrid architecture, which enhances the conductivity from graphene to MoS2 as well as the HER activity. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.