A TDOA/AOA hybrid location algorithm based on the crow search algorithm optimized by particle swarm optimization is proposed to address the challenge of solving the nonlinear equation of time of arrival (TDOA/AOA) location in the non-line-of-sight (NLoS) environment. This algorithm keeps its optimization mechanism on the basis of enhancing the performance of the original algorithm. To obtain a better fitness value throughout the optimization process and increase the algorithm’s optimization accuracy, the fitness function based on maximum likelihood estimation is modified. In order to speed up algorithm convergence and decrease needless global search without compromising population diversity, an initial solution is simultaneously added to the starting population location. Simulation findings demonstrate that the suggested method outperforms the TDOA/AOA algorithm and other comparable algorithms, including Taylor, Chan, PSO, CPSO, and basic CSA algorithms. The approach performs well in terms of robustness, convergence speed, and node positioning accuracy.