CdS nanocrystals are synthesized by co-precipitation method using 2-mercaptoethanol (ME) as capping agent. Cubic, hexagonal and their mixture are obtained by varying the ME concentration. Lower (higher) ME concentration results in cubic (hexagonal) phase. The crystallite sizes are in the range 3-7 nm. Increase in ME concentration lead to lower reaction rate between Cd2+ and S-2 of the precursors, and slower reaction rate is found to favor hexagonal phase formation over the cubic one in CdS nanocrystals. Role of reaction rate in the phase formation process provides a way to synthesize CdS nanocrystals in desired crystal phase. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.