We report a facile nitrogenation/exfoliation process to prepare hybrid Ni-C-N nanosheets. These nanosheets are <2 nm thin, chemically stable, and metallically conductive. They serve as a robust catalyst for the hydrogen evolution reaction in 0.5 M H2SO4, or 1.0 M KOH or 1.0 M PBS (pH = 7). For example, they catalyze the hydrogen evolution reaction in 0.5 M H2SO4 at an onset potential of 34.7 mV, an overpotential of 60.9 mV (at j = 10 mA cm-2) and with remarkable long-term stability (∼10% current drop after 70 h testing period). They are promising as a non-Pt catalyst for practical hydrogen evolution reaction.