Newly identified organic single crystals of 8-hydroyquinolinium 2-chloro 4-nitrobenzoate (HQ2ClNB) were grown by the slow evaporation solution growth technique (SEST) using methanol as a solvent. It crystallizes in monoclinic crystal system with a space group of P21/c. Crystalline nature and phases were confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD). The existence of various functional groups in the molecule was identified using the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technique. Optical transmission window and lower cut-off wavelength of the HQ2ClNB crystal have been evaluated by UV–Visible–NIR studies. Dielectric and photoconductivity studies were recorded. Third-order nonlinear optical susceptibility [Formula: see text] of the crystals were evaluated by [Formula: see text]-scan studies.