A chipmunk has internal cheek pouches for carrying food or excavated dirt. Cheeks and sides of the body are grayish-tan to tawny brown, and the underparts are whitish. The most prominent field marks are five dark brown to blackish stripes on the back and sides. The narrowest stripe centers on the backbone, while on each side from shoulder to rump two more dark stripes sandwich a cream-colored band. On the sides of the face two buffy stripes outline the eye, and a black stripe runs through it.
Adults molt in late spring or early summer and again in late fall or early winter.
Winter pelage is slightly paler than summer. Albino and melanistic individuals occur. Chipmunks are graceful and spry, quick to dart for their underground burrows when startled. They run with their bushy tails held straight up. Their senses of sight and hearing are keen.