Photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting using semiconductor photoelectrodes is regarded as a promising and sustainable strategy to address the future supply of energy in a sustainable way. However, the search for robust and efficient photoanode materials for water oxidation remains one of the biggest challenges for practical applications. Bismuth vanadate (BiVO4) is one of the most promising photoanode materials as it combines a suitable bandgap (ca. 2.4 -2.6 eV) and good stability under typical operating conditions in aqueous solutions. When compared with other metal oxides, such as α-Fe2O3, BiVO4 exhibits charge carrier lifetimes that are four orders of magnitude higher, and hole diffusion length one order of magnitude longer. Nevertheless, pristine BiVO4 still suffers from poor bulk electronic conductivity, ineffective hole extraction, and slow rate of water oxidation. As a result, the reported photocurrent densities at non-modified BiVO4 are typically much lower than the maximum theoretical value of 6.4 -8.9 mA cm -2 under AM 1.5G illumination, corresponding to maximum solar-to-H2 conversion efficiencies of 8-11%. Thus, designing straightforward, scalable strategies to overcome these drawbacks of BiVO4 materials represents an important research agenda.