Shrubs or trees , to 20(-45) m. Bark gray or brown, smooth or deeply furrowed. Twigs densely yellowish tomentose. Leaf blade adaxially convex, to 60-120 mm, leathery to brittle, margins often revolute, regularly toothed, teeth prominent to obscure; surfaces abaxially prominently and densely woolly, often glabrate at maturity, revealing gray or bluish green waxy surface, veins often distally impressed. Fruits: cup scales subulate, spreading to strongly recurved, hooked; nut yellowish brown, globose to cylindric-tapered, to 15-35 mm, extremely hard, densely tomentose, eventually glabrate.

Sterile specimens of Lithocarpus densiflorus are often confused with Chrysolepis and vice versa. Nonfruiting material of L . densiflorus is recognizable by the loose tomentose pubescence of the leaves and inflorescences (although the leaves are often glabrate with age). Chrysolepis lacks this tomentose pubescence and has only a tight vestiture of glandular-peltate trichomes, except for some stellate and straight simple trichomes associated with the flowers.

The Costanoan used infusions prepared from the bark of Lithocarpus densiflora (no varieties specified) as a wash for facial sores and to tighten loose teeth (D. E. Moerman 1986).