Pure nanostructures of yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG) was prepared based on the cathodic electrodeposition method from the mixture of YCl3 and ACl(3) dissolved in water/ethanol solution. At first, hydroxide precursors cathodically were grown on the steel substrates then, the hydroxide powders heat treated at 850 degrees C for 4 h in dry air atmosphere. The formation of crystalline YAG nanopowder was confirmed by Xray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (DSC-TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). The results of the SEM showed that applied current density and bath temperature have the prominent effect on the morphology and particle size of the products. The results revealed that cathodic electrodeposition followed by heat-treatment can be used as a facile method for preparation of YAG nanostructures with different morphology. (C) 2016 The Society of Powder Technology Japan. Published by Elsevier B.V. and The Society of Powder Technology Japan. All rights reserved.