A series of transition metal silicate hollow spheres, including cobalt silicate (Co2SiO4), manganese silicate (MnSiO3) and copper silicate (CuSiO3 center dot 2H(2)O, CuSiO3 as abbreviation in the text) were prepared via a simple and economic hydrothermal method by using silica spheres as chemical template. Time-dependent experiments confirmed that the resultants formed a novel type of hierarchical structure, hollow spheres assembled by numerous one-dimensional (10) nanotubes building blocks. For the first time, the transition metal silicate hollow spheres were characterized as novel anode materials of Li-ion battery, which presented superior lithium storage capacities, cycle performance and rate performance. The 1D nanotubes assembly and hollow interior endow this kind of material facilitate fast lithium ion and electron transport and accommodate the big volume change during the conversion reactions. Our study shows that low-cost transition metal silicate with rationally designed nanostructures can be promising anode materials for high capacity lithium-ion battery. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.