Bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) has attracted increasing attention as a photoanode for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. It has a band gap in the visible light range (2.4–2.5 eV) and a valence band position suitable for driving water oxidation under illumination. While a number of methods have been used to make BiVO₄ photoanodes, scalable thin film deposition has remained relatively underexplored. Here, we report the synthesis of BiVO₄ thin films by reactive sputtering. The use of separate Bi and V sputtering targets allows control of the Bi/V ratio in the film. Under optimized, slightly V-rich conditions, monoclinic phase BiVO₄ with photoactivity for water oxidation is obtained. The highest photocurrents, ca. 1 mA cm^–2 at the reversible O₂/H₂O potential with simulated AM 1.5G illumination, are obtained with bilayer WO₃/BiVO₄, where the WO₃ serves as a hole-blocking layer.