Lignin valorization has attracted significant attention in recent years due to its abundance and its potential as a potential renewable organic carbon resource to produce a variety of value-added chemicals and fuel additives. Catalytic upgrading of lignin faces challenges due to its complex structure and an active catalyst with selective surface properties is needed to break the stable C–O and C–C interunit linkages. In the present work, we developed a series of multifunctional Ru/NbOPO4/TiO2 catalysts with varying surface acidic properties and explored their potential upon hydrogenolysis of lignin model compound eugenol. Textural and surface acid-base properties of the prepared materials were studied by means of different techniques such as N2-physisorption, NH3-TPD, XRD, SEM-EDS, Raman spectra, FT-IR, and TEM. Our catalytic results revealed synergistic role of acid and metal sites upon catalyst performance, whereupon high yields of hydrocarbons (86.9–100 wt.%) were obtained with selective cleavage of the methoxy and hydroxy groups under milder conditions. A kinetic study further identified the reaction mechanism and determined a rate law and partial reaction orders. This research advances the understanding of catalyst design for upgrading of the lignin or lignin monomers into value added chemicals. and on the other hand, contributes to sustainable development by maximizing biomass usage and providing environmentally friendly alternatives in renewable energy.This study presents an efficient, liquid phase H3PO4-free hydrothermal method for synthesizing highly dispersed, high-surface-area, multifunctional and active mesoporous Ru/NbOPO4/TiO2 catalysts. Overall, the Ru/NbOPO4/TiO2 catalysts developed in this study show superior catalytic activity and surface properties, making them suitable not only for lignin valorization but also for other industrial applications of converting bio-based macromolecules into valuable products.