Ternary nanocomposites comprised of one-dimensional (1D) WO3&WS2 nanorods (NRs) and CdS nanoparticles (NPs) fabricated through a two-step process were characterized using a combination of X-ray, microscopy, and spectroscopy techniques. The amount of CdS strongly influences the properties of the nanocomposites, with 40 wt.% of CdS loading showing optimal optical properties and photoelectro-chemical (PEC) as well as photocatalytic activities for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Compared with WO3&WS2 NRs, the optimized nanocomposite shows 11.4 times enhancement in photocurrent and 6 times increase for HER with lactic acid as a sacrificial agent. The enhanced PEC and HER activities can be attributed to CdS absorption of visible light as well as the intimate contact between WO3&WS2 and CdS that efficiently enhances charge carrier separation. This work demonstrated a promising strategy in the design and fabrication of high-performance photocatalysts for photocatalytic HER applications. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.