CuO nanorods have been prepared through a facile microwave-hydrothermal method with the aid of polyethylene glycol 400, ethylene glycol and urea. The X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy results showed that the prepared CuO nanocrystalline had a rod-like shape with diameters of 15–20 nm and the average length of 80 nm. Compared with commercial CuO powder, the CuO nanorods showed an enhanced catalytic activity for the synthesis of sodium humate and the degradation of Rhodamine B. The yield of sodium humate catalyzed by CuO nanorods was 75.78%, which was higher than that of the commercial CuO powder (52.8%). In addition, the CuO nanorods showed a relatively faster degradation rate of RhB. The CuO nanorods prepared by this facile method demonstrated their potential applications in the field of catalysis.