In this article, we looked at how the multifunctional characteristics of a multiferroic BiFeO3 were affected by the synthesis process. La and Co modified BiFeO3 powders with x= 0.05 were prepared by conventional solid-state reaction and sol–gel route. The X-ray Diffraction patterns of both the samples, prepared by sol–gel and solid-state route show single-phase formation. It has been observed that sol–gel route attains the low temperature phase formation as compared to the solid state route. The density was optimized by sintering these samples at different loads. Room temperature dielectric plots with the frequency of these samples revealed that the dielectric constant decreases with frequency, and dielectric loss in the solid state reaction (SSR) prepared sample is smaller than the sol–gel route (SGR) prepared sample. The effects of processing on dielectric properties of La and Co modified BiFeO3 have been studied in the different frequency and temperature range from 300 K (RT) to 550 K. Dielectric anomalies in temperature dependent dielectric plots have been observed in both of the samples.