Perovskite type Ba0.98Ca0.02Zr0.02Ti0.98O3 (BCZT), Ba0.98Ca0.02Zr0.02Ti0.976Cu0.008O3 (BCZTC) and Ba0.9725Bi0.005Ca0.02Zr0.02Ti0.976Cu0.008O3 (BCZTCB) lead-free ceramics were synthesised via solid-state reaction method at a sintering temperature of ~ 1380°C. Effects of CuO and Bi2O3/CuO doping on structural, microstructural, dielectric, and ferroelectric properties were investigated systematically. X-ray diffraction technique confirmed the existence of pure perovskite phase with the tetragonal structure in pure and in the doped BCZT ceramics at room temperature. The dielectric analysis demonstrated two anomalies around 24°C and 126°C for BCZT, which were identified as orthorhombic to tetragonal (TO-T) and tetragonal to cubic (TC) phase transition temperature, respectively. The TO-T temperature shifted to below 16°C, while the TC increased to 132°C for the BCZTCB sample. The physical mechanisms of the conduction processes were investigated through impedance spectroscopy and the values of resistance, conductivity, and activation energies associated with the grain and grain boundaries were evaluated. The activation energy was determined to be higher for doped samples than for pure BCZT. Further, the dopant-dependent ferroelectric nature of the ceramic samples was evidenced by the analysis of characteristic hysteresis loop, and a value of remnant polarisation (Pr = 4.59 µC/cm2) was obtained for the BCZTCB ceramic sample. Furthermore, the d33 value, which was 54 pC/N for pure BCZT, was determined to be 140 pC/N and 64 pC/N for BCZTC and BCZTCB, respectively.