We report highly hydrogen selective Pd contacted ZnO nanorods based sensor detecting low concentration even at low operating temperature of 50 °C. The sensor performance was investigated for various gases such as H2, CH4, H2S and CO2 at different operating temperatures from 50 °C to 175 °C for various gas concentrations ranging from 7 ppm to 10,000 ppm (1%). The sensor is highly efficient as it detects hydrogen even at low concentration of ∼7 ppm and at operating temperature of 50 °C. The sensor's minimum limit of detection and relative response at 175 °C were found 7 ppm with ∼38.7% for H2, 110 ppm with ∼6.08% for CH4, 500 ppm with ∼10.06% for H2S and 1% with ∼11.87% for CO2. Here, Pd exhibits dual characteristics as metal contact and excellent catalyst to hydrogen molecules. The activation energy was calculated for all the gases and found lowest ∼3.658 kJ/mol for H2. Low activation energy accelerates desorption reactions and enhances the sensor's performance.