Highly transparent Yb: TbVO4 single crystal with dimensions of empty set27 x 41 mm(3) alomost without scattering defects has been successfully grown by Czochralski technique. The spectra, thermal properties and laser-induced damage threshold were investigated in detailed. The Faraday rotation (FR) measurement was carried out by means of extinction method. The Verdet constant comes up to 80 rad m(-1) T-1 at 1064 nm, significantly larger than TbVO4 (58 rad m(-1) T-1) and TGG (40 rad m(-1) T-1) reported. Meanwhile, the as-grown crystal presents lower absorption coefficient and higher magneto-optical figure of merit at measured wavelength in comparison with TGG. Moreover, the crystal exhibits a substantially improved extinction ratio (42 dB) in contrast with TbVO4 (29 dB), and exceeds the highest value of TGG (40 dB). These advantages make Yb: TbVO4 a highly promising magneto-optical material candidate for optical isolators in the visible-near infrared region. (C) 2017 Published by Elsevier B.V.