Nano-sized BiPO4 has been successfully synthesized via a novel designed two-steps solvothermal route using ethylene glycol as solvent. Comparing with traditional hydrothermal method, the novel approach could readily prepare BiPO4 with shorter time. The photocatalytic activity of prepared BiPO4 has been tested via degradation of methylene blue (MB) under light irradiation. The experimental results show that the BiPO4 prepared by novel route had enhanced photocatalytic activity and the synthetic parameters also impact the reaction rate meaningfully. Finally, the obtained samples have been widely characterized by means of powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) and Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) spectra. BiPO4 prepared by this novel approach have a particles size below 100 nm, which is a big improvement by comparing with previous works (few micrometer). The effect of EG during the formation of BiPO4 has been discussed and a possible formation mechanism is proposed. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.