Photocatalytic hydrogen production is a promising approach of sustainable economy, because a use of sunlight and water to produce a fuel will solve a problem of fossil fuels depletion. Metal sulfides are well known photocatalysts in water splitting process, but in absence of sacrificial electron donor they undergo a photocorrosion. In this paper we studied a possible strategy to protect the sulfide photocatalysts and to improve its photostability by a deposition of small amount of ruthenium oxide at surface of sulfides. Nanocrystalline zinc sulfide and copper sulfide were prepared in a hydrothermal way and have been functionalized by RuO2. As prepared photocatalysts showed good activity towards hydrogen formation. Modification of sulfides with ruthenium oxide had a few positive effects: it expanded a light absorption range by photocatalysts, enhanced the photocatalytic activity towards H-2 formation, improved a photostability in comparison with neat ZnS and CuS as well as protected from the electronic and structural changes within semiconductors due to irradiation. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.