We report the growth of thin CuInS2 films by the evaporation of the elements on (100)Si and glass substrates. For the metals commercially available Knudsen effusion cells were used, while for the sulphur a new three-stage cracker cell has been developed. The polycrystalline films are characterized by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and scanning tunnelling microscopy. The effects of substrate and annealing temperatures and deposition rates on composition, crystalline order, grain size and surface morphology are investigated. The conditions for the growth of stoichiometric and planar CuInS, thin films of good crystal quality are determined.