In present work, microrod structured La2O3 thin films are grown on to the stainless steel substrate using a binder free single step hydrothermal method. The structural, morphological and active surface area properties of La2O3 thin film are studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), contact angle, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transformation spectroscopy (FT-IR), and Brunauer-EmmerTeller (BET) techniques. The La2O3 thin film electrode showed the maximum specific capacitance of 250 F g(-1) at a scan rate of 5 mV s(-1) with an excellent cycling performance (81%) up to 1000 cycles. The La2O3 thin film electrode shows maximum specific energy and specific power of 80 Wh kg(-1) and 1.5 kW kg(-1), respectively. The symmetric solid state supercapacitor devices (SSSD) with La2O3 thin film have been fabricated using gel electrolyte (PVA-LiClO4). (C) 2016 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.