Ternary copper tin sulfides (CTS) have been attracted great attention as anode materials for lithium ion batteries (LIBs) owning to their high theoretical capacities and unique lithium storage mechanisms. However, the practical applications of CTS are plagued from the serious volumetric variation during the charge/discharge process. Herein, a high Cu/(Sn + S) element ratio copper tin sulfides, Cu4SnS4/Sn (CTS-4), with unique walnut-like microspheres was successfully prepared and firstly investigated as LIB anode materials. Compared with low Cu/ (Sn + S) ratio Cu2SnS3 (CTS-3), CTS-4 delivers efficient lithium storage performance, cycling stability and rate capability. The considerable electrochemical performance is attributed to the higher conductivity and favorable Li+ diffusion coefficient of CTS-4 resulting from unique element ratio. This work will provide insight towards designing and building new anode materials for high-performance LIBs.