Hollow urchin-like NiCo2O4 microspheres were facilely synthesized by a simple hydrothermal approach combined with subsequent annealing process. The three-dimensional architectures with hollow structure are formed by the mechanism of the nanowires self-assembly associate with the subsequent Ostwald ripening process. The as-obtained NiCo2O4 microspheres with the average diameter of about 5 mu m consist of numerous radial nanowires and benefited from the hollow urchin-like microsphere structure, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller results show that it possesses a large specific surface area of 92.8 m(2) g(-1), when it was applied as an electrode material for sodium-ion batteries, the NiCo2O4 electrode displayed a high invertible capacity of similar to 440 mAh g(-1) after 200 cycles at a current density of 100 mA g(-1), and the electrochemical measurement results also indicated the NiCo2O4 electrode possess a charming rate capability. These results suggest a promising application of the hollow urchin-like NiCo2O4 microspheres for the advanced sodium-ion batteries.