Aim 3‐Phenyllactic acid (3‐PLA) has been widely used in food and material industries. Three Lactobacillus crustorum strains have shown greater 3‐PLA production ability in our previous study. The objectives of this study were to further improve 3‐PLA yields in batch and continuous fermentation systems using of free‐whole‐cells of the three L. crustorum strains. Materials and Results The fermentation conditions of free‐whole‐cells of the three L. crustorum strains for 3‐PLA production were optimized. Among these strains, L. crustorum NWAFU 1078 showed excellent reusability and significantly (P < 0·05) greater 3‐PLA production ability than the other strains after 10th recycle. The strain possesses three l‐lactate dehydrogenase and three d‐lactate dehydrogenase catalysing 3‐PLA production from phenylpyruvic acid (PPA). Under the optimal conditions, the strain produced 15·2 mmol l−1 3‐PLA (76% PPA conversion rate) in a batch fermentation system and 6·5 mmol l−1 h−1 3‐PLA (55% PPA conversion rate) in a continuous fermentation system using a 0·6 dilution rate. Conclusions Free‐whole‐cells of L. crustorum NWAFU 1078 showed excellent reusability and higher 3‐PLA yields under optimal biotransformation conditions in both batch and continuous fermentation systems. Significance and Impact of the Study This study provides the possibility to use the free‐whole‐cells of L. crustorum NWAFU 1078 as a biocatalyst for effective production of 3‐PLA.