La 2 O 3 (0–0.8wt.%)-doped (Bi 0.5 Na 0.5 ) 0.94 Ba 0.06 TiO 3 (abbreviated as BNBT6) lead-free piezoelectric ceramics were synthesized by conventional solid-state reaction. The influences of La 2 O 3 on the microstructure, the dielectric, ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of the composites were investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns indicate that 0.2-0.8wt.% of La 2 O 3 has diffused into the lattice of BNBT6 ceramics. Consequently, a pure perovskite phase is formed. SEM images show that the microstructure of the ceramics is changed with the addition of a small amount of La 2 O 3 . The temperature dependence of the relative dielectric constant shows that Curie point decreases with the increase of La 2 O 3 . At room temperature, the ceramics doped with 0.6wt.% La 2 O 3 show superior performance with high piezoelectric constant (d 33 =167 pC/N), high planar electromechanical coupling factor (k p =0.30), high mechanical quality factor (Q m =118), high relative dielectric constant (ε r =1470) and lower dissipation factor (tanδ=0.056) at a frequency of 10kHz.