Metal oxides, such as SnO2, Fe2O3, CoO, Co3O4, NiO, CuO and MnO2 etc., are promising anode materials for lithium-ion batteries due to their high capacity and safety characteristics. However, the commercial utility of metal oxide anodes has been hindered to date by their poor cycling performance. Recent study shows that metal oxides with hollow nano/microstructures exhibit fascinating performance as anode materials for Li ion batteries. In this review, we first describe the current commonly used synthetic methods to create metal oxide hollow structures, and for each method, we also comment on its advantages and shortages compared with other methods. According to some typical examples and the following theoretical analysis, we show the promising use of hollow metal oxides as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Finally, the challenges and future developments of metal oxide hollow structures are further discussed. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.