Vertically oriented graphene-based nanocatalysts represent an emerging class of electrocatalysts due to their large surface area and excellent electrical transport ability. Herein, we report a vertically oriented reduced graphene oxide supported dealloyed palladium copper nanoparticle catalyst (PdCu/VrGO) synthesized by a facile cyclic voltammetric electrodeposition of graphene oxide in the presence of Na2PdCl4 and copper ethylenediamine tetraacetate. The structure and composition are characterized by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Meanwhile, the electrochemical properties are measured by cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry. The PdCu/VrGO catalyst exhibits excellent electrocatalytic activity towards methanol oxidation, with the mass activity of 762.8 A g(-1), which is 7.1 times that of a commercial Pd/C catalyst. In addition, PdCu/VrGO shows good chemical stability and superior tolerance to CO poisoning. These results demonstrate that vertical reduced graphene oxide provides a promising platform for the development of electrochemical nanocatalysts. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.