A facile anion exchange strategy was applied to the synthesis of porous NiS hexagonal nanoplates (NiS HNPs) as an electrode material for supercapacitors. It was found that Na2S concentration is a key factor to achieve porous NiS hexagonal nanoplates with well-defined architecture. Porous NiS hexagonal nanoplates exhibited a specific capacitance of 1897 F g-1 at a current density of 1 A g-1. NiS HNPs//activated carbon (AC) asymmetric supercapacitor (ASC) shows a long cycle lifespan (about 100% capacity retention after 4000 cycles at a current density of 3 A g-1) with a maximum energy density of 11.6 Wh kg-1 at a large loading mass of about 30 mg. Impressively, two NiS HNPs//AC ASCs in series could light up a red LED for about 30 min. The remarkable electrochemical performance of NiS HNPs is ascribed to their unique hierarchical porous architectures. The anion exchange method is a facile and versatile strategy for the synthesis of metal sulfides with high performance for energy storage.