Solar light-driven water splitting offers a sustainable pathway for energy conversion. This study presents a straightforward electrodeposition method for decorating ZnO nanosheets with CdS nanonoodles, varying the deposition time. Structural and morphological analysis confirmed the formation of a crystalline, Cd-rich hexagonal CdS phase on the ZnO nanosheets, exhibiting a unique nanonoodles morphology. The thickness of the CdS/ZnO nanonoodles gradually increased to 30 μm with extended deposition times. Notably, the valence band of the hybrid CdS/ZnO nanonoodles exhibit a lower binding energy compared to both CdS nanonoodles and ZnO nanosheets, highlighting interfacial charge transfer and enhanced synergy. The hybrid CdS/ZnO nanonoodle photoanode, fabricated with a 60-min deposition time, exhibits a reduced band gap of 2.8 eV compared to the 3.2 eV band gap of the pristine ZnO nanosheets. This reduction in the band gap indicates enhanced solar light absorption capabilities. The CdS/ZnO nanonoodles demonstrate a gradual improvement in the photoelectrochemical water splitting efficiency with increasing deposition time. The hybrid photoanode achieves a remarkable photocurrent density of 9.49 mA cm⁻² at 1.23 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), representing a 20-fold increase compared to the ZnO nanosheets (0.46 mA cm⁻²) and a 7-fold increase compared to the CdS nanonoodles (1.45 mA cm⁻²). This heterostructured CdS/ZnO nanonoodles hybrid photoanode achieves an impressive conversion efficiency of 9.21 % at 0.4 V vs. RHE.