The walking catfish has an elongated body form and may grow to be about 0.5 m (1.6 ft) long and weigh 1.2 kg (2.6 lb). The body is mostly grey or greyish brown in colour, with tiny white spots on the sides. The dorsal and anal fins are long-based, and there are numerous pairs of sensory barbels on this catfish. The mouth is broad, although the gape is not great.