As adults they are a little bit smaller than a housefly. Their wings are brownish to black in color and have dark bands. They have a black body with yellow markings at the base of the wing.
White stripes are evident across the abdomen of the fly.
As larvae they are white, do not have any legs and have no distinct head. They are about 5-6 millimeters long when mature. As pupae they live in the ground and are brownish in color. They are about 4-5 millimeters long and and elongate oval in shape. When the larvae of the western cherry fruit fly mature as larvae they make holes in the cherry and eat out of it.