In this study, a three dimensional (3D) MoS 2 /β-Bi 2 O 3 heterostructure with high-performance for photocatalytic removal of pollutants was constructed by a simple deposition of the MoS 2 quantum dots on the surface of porous β-Bi 2 O 3 spheres. Compared with pure β-Bi 2 O 3 microspheres, the 1.0% MoS 2 /β-Bi 2 O 3 composite exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity in the degradation of Bisphenol A (BPA) in aqueous solution and oxidative removal of gaseous NO under visible light irradiation, and the removal efficiency reached 94.0% and 41.4% for BPA and NO within 30 min, respectively. The enhanced photocatalytic activity is attributed to the formation heterojunction between MoS 2 quantum dots and β-Bi 2 O 3 , which facilitates the separation and transfer efficiency of photogenerated electron–hole pairs, boosts catalytic active sites and hinders an electron–hole recombination rate. The results of trapping experiments indicates that both of O 2 −∙ and h + are the reactive species for BPA degradation. The recyclability test confirms that the 1.0% MoS 2 /β-Bi 2 O 3 composite photocatalyst has a superior stability during recycling cycle. This work demonstrates that a unique 3D photocatalyst system can provides a new perspective and opens up new opportunities on the design of efficient composite photocatalysts. © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.