Ce3+-doped BaLiF3 (BLF) and KMgF3 (KMF) single crystals were grown by the Czochralski technique. The optical absorption spectra of Ce3+ in the ELF and KMF crystals consist of five overlapping broadbands, which are classified into two groups corresponding to the E-g and T-2g excited states of 5d orbitals of Ce3+ with approximately cubic symmetry. The luminescence spectrum with a peak at 320 nm from Ce3+ ions in ELF has the large Stokes shift energy (8300 cm(-1)), whereas that with a peak at 267 nm in KMF has the Stokes shift energy of half that amount (4700 cm(-1)). The difference is due to the lattice relaxation energy in the Sd-excited state of Ce3+, which is determined by the surroundings of Ce3+ in the crystals.