The belly color matches that of the back. Some individuals may be uniformly tan or cream colored, lacking the dark pigmentation on the head. The head is large and angular, with large eyes shielded by projecting supraocular scales. The scales are smooth , and there are 17 dorsal scale rows at midbody. The pupil is round.
Juveniles are brown or tan with indistinct dark dorsal crossbands.
It is found throughout Florida, excluding the keys. Outside of Florida, it is found from Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas, east to North Carolina. However, it is absent from most of the Mississippi River delta. It is locally abundant, and occurs primarily in pine and palmetto flatwoods, longleaf pine-turkey oak sandhills, scrub, and along the beaches interspersed with sand dunes, sea oats, and grape vines. Coachwhips are active during the day, are extremely fast on the ground, and are great climbers.