It is of great significance to develop efficient platforms for the detection of hypertoxic Hg 2 +. Colorimetric probes have received much attention for the detection of Hg 2 + in the last decades. In this work, a colorimetric probe composed of MnO 2 nanosheets and monothioglycerol (MTG) was rationally designed for Hg 2 + detection, which was facially prepared via onestep reaction at room temperature. The formation of HgÀ S bond between Hg 2 + and MTG inhibited the decomposition ability of MTG toward MnO 2 nanosheets, thus resulting in a color change from colorless to brown. On this basis, the probe quantified Hg 2 + in the concentration range from 2 to 60 μM with a low detection limit of 0.75 μM. The probe was applied to the detection of Hg 2 + in tap water successfully, and was further fabricated into test strips for the convenience of use. Thereby, a simple and sensitive colorimetric probe for Hg 2 + is developed in this work, which holds future promise for monitoring Hg 2 + in the environment.