In this paper, we produced Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae)-Fe3O4 (S@F) by a low-cost and self-assembly technique called the one-step method. The results of SEM and XRD showed that nano-Fe3O4 particles had successfully attached to the surface of S. cerevisiae and the results of TEM indicted that nano-Fe3O4 particles had a uniform core–shell structure to the composite S. cerevisiae with a magnetic core. The results of FTIR showed that nano-Fe3O4 particles were mainly combined with S. cerevisiae through chemical bonds. Meanwhile, the VSM analysis and SBET results reflected that S@F had a good magnetization and big surface area. Strontium ion sorption of S@F was independent of ionic concentration and pH, indicating that the complexion and electrostatic attraction dominated the sorption. Besides, the results of VSM analysis and SBET reflected that S@F had good magnetization and large surface area, and we found that the adsorption capacity of S@F for strontium ions was independent of ion concentration and pH, which indicated that complexation and electrostatic attraction played a dominant role in the adsorption process. S@F needed 16 h to get the maximum from our pseudo-second-order kinetic study analysis and The maximum adsorption capacity of S@F calculated by the Langmuir isotherm model is 20.47 mg g−1. Moreover, whether it is in a single working condition, in simulated low-level wastewater or a radiation environment, S@F always has good regeneration ability and reusable performance (after three cycles, S@F almost maintains the same adsorption capacity). In summary, these findings indicate that S@F can be a renewable material for nuclear wastewater treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]