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Nanoparticles of TiO _2 and TiO _2 -ZnO composite (2:1 molar ratio) were synthesized utilizing the sol-gel and solution combustion approaches, respectively. Scanning electron microscopic, energy dispersive x-ray, x-ray diffraction, UV-visible spectroscopy, and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller analysis were employed to characterize the synthesized nanoporous TiO _2 and the composite of TiO _2 -ZnO nanoparticles. Fabrication of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) was carried out by incorporating the synthesized nanoporous materials coating on the photoanodes using the doctor blade technique. Nano TiO _2 and the composite of TiO _2 -ZnO were also analyzed using cyclic voltammetry test, and their performance was compared for the electrochemical detection of potassium ferrocyanide. The composite of TiO _2 -ZnO exhibited better electrocatalytic activity in comparison with the pure TiO _2 nanoparticles. The fabricated DSSCs by employing nano TiO _2 particles and TiO _2 -ZnO composite as the semiconductor photoanode materials were compared for photovoltaic performance. The DSSC fabricated with TiO _2 nanoparticles exhibited better photovoltaic performance with an efficiency of 2.22% and a current density of 4.152 mA cm ^−2 than that fabricated with TiO _2 -ZnO composite with an efficiency of 0.0022% and a short circuit current density of 0.014 mA cm ^−2 .