Abstract The non-hygroscopic crystal of TlAlF4 was grown by self seeded vertical Bridgman technique. The crystalline phase was confirmed through powder X-ray diffraction measurement and compared with reference data. The effective atomic number (Zeff) of the TlAlF4 compound was calculated about 70.77. The X-ray induced emission spectrum having a very strong luminescence band at 390 nm. Thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL) glow curve measurement shows the peak maximum at 430 K. The kinetic parameters for the main TSL peak were studied using various standard methods. The mean activation energy (E) is calculated to be 0.93 eV and the frequency factor is 4.79 × 1011 s−1. The dose response of the sample was studied using X-ray exited luminescence and TSL glow curves. The sample shows good linearity for measured dose range from 17 to 50 R/min. Thermal fading of the sample was checked over a long period of time and also the reusability of the sample was examined. The main TSL peak at high temperature with high sensitivity to ionizing radiation, good consistency in reusability of TSL signals, linear dose response against delivered X-ray doses in a wide dose range and moderate fading effect are some desirable properties of TlAlF4 crystal for considering radiation dosimetric applications.