Three-dimensional (3D) MoS2@carbon fibers (CFs) hierarchical architectures are successfully synthesized via a simple hydrothermal method and subsequent annealing. MoS2 nanoflakes are grown on the twine carbon fibers of the carbonized waste cotton cloth. The twine CFs can provide a short diffusion path for ions in electrolyte, enhance the specific surface area, and improve the conductivity of the 3D MoS2@CFs hierarchical architectures with high mass loading of 4.4 mg cm(-2). The 3D MoS2@CFs hierarchical architectures as the electrode material can achieve a high reversible areal capacity (5.2 mAh cm(-2) at 2.5 mA cm(-2)) and exhibit an excellent rate performance. In addition, CFs are prepared by simply carbonizing the waste cotton and then used as carbon source, which is low-cost and eco-friendly. We also found that the Mo nanoparticles produced during the charge/discharge process exist in the hierarchical architectures during cycling and can improve the conductivity of the entire system as well as the cycling stability. Therefore, MoS2@CFs nanocomposites as electrode materials manifest a significant application potential for high-performance Li-ion batteries. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.