A simple hydrothermal method is developed for the growth of NiCo2O4 nano-needle arrays on a filter paper carbon (FC) substrate for use as a high performance electrode for supercapacitors. The as-synthesized NiCo2O4/C composites exhibited high specific capacitance (995.2 F g−1 at a current density of 10 A g−1) and excellent cycling performance (no capacitance loss after 3000 cycles). The 3D framework of the FC substrate not only prevents the aggregation of NiCo2O4 nanoparticles, but also improves its electrical conductivity, thus leading to excellent electrochemical performance. Moreover, an asymmetric supercapacitor was assembled by using the NiCo2O4/C composites and activated carbon as the positive and negative electrode, respectively, and provided a maximum energy density of 20.87 Wh kg−1 at a power density of 374.6 W kg−1 and a maximum power density of 7.48 kW kg−1 at an energy density of 11.43 Wh kg−1 within a potential window of 0–1.5 V, demonstrating the potential of the composites for use in high performance energy storage systems.