〈1 1 1〉 oriented bis thiourea cadmium acetate (BTCA) crystal of diameter 15 mm and length 45 mm was grown for the first time by the unidirectional Sankaranarayanan–Ramasamy (SR) method. The conventional and SR method grown BTCA crystals were characterized by using high-resolution X-ray diffraction (HRXRD), chemical etching, Vickers microhardness, UV–vis, dielectric studies and differential scanning calorimetry. The HRXRD analysis indicates that the crystalline perfection of SR method grown crystal is good without having any low angle internal structural grain boundaries. The transmittance of SR method grown BTCA is 14% higher than that of conventional grown crystal. The dielectric constant was higher and the dielectric loss was less in SR method grown crystal. The crystals grown by SR method possess less dislocation density and higher microhardness.