In this work, Ce:YAG crystal and transparent ceramics were prepared by the temperature gradient technique （TGT） and sintering in vacuum， respectively. The optical and scintillation properties of the as-prepared Ce:YAG crystal and ceramics were investigated and compared. Both crystal and ceramics show typical Ce3+ absorption bands at 230，340 and 460 nm and a 540 nm emission peak. However, the color center absorption bands at 296 and 370 nm with an emission peak at 398 nm were also observed in the TGT crystal. X-ray fluorescence spectra of crystal and ceramics show an emission peak at 520 nm, but another emission peak at 300 nm was found in the crystal which can be attributed to the YAl antisite defects. An average light output of 16800 and 9800 photons/MeV and a single exponential decay with the decay time constants of 61.9 and 62.97 ns were found in the as-prepared Ce:YAG crystal and ceramics. Compared with Ce:YAG ceramics, Ce:YAG crystal shows a higher light yield and faster response.