CoMn2O4 nanofibers with hollow structures are successfully prepared by the electrospinning technique. These hollow nanofibers are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), thermogravimetric analysis (TG) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analyzer. The temperature-dependent experiments are also carried out to monitor the evolution process of CoMn2O4 hollow nanofibers (HNs), and a possible formation mechanism is introduced reasonably based on the investigations. When evaluated as an electrode material for lithium-ion batteries, the results of electrochemical test show that these unique CoMn2O4 HNs exhibit admirable lithium storage performances with high specific capacity and excellent rate capability. The hollow and continuous one dimensional (ID) nanostructures of the CoMn2O4 HNs make a prominent contribution to the excellent electrochemical performance. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.