A microwave hydrothermal route has been used to synthesize homogenous SnO2 multilayer core-shell microspheres by using carbon microspheres as the template, followed by a calcination process. The effects of both hydrothermal and calcination temperatures on the morphology and photocatalytic properties of SnO2 core-shell microspheres were studied. On the basis of the evolution of the morphology with increasing reaction temperature, a possible formation mechanism of SnO2 core-shell microspheres was proposed. Photocatalytic investigations revealed that the homogenous SnO2 core-shell spheres possessed enhanced photocatalytic activity to organic dyes such as Rhodamine B. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.