"Barcoo" was one of twelve frigates built in Australia during World War II. She and seven other vessels were constructed to the British River-class design. "Barcoo" was in length, with a beam of , and a draught of . The frigate displaced 1,340 tonnes at standard load and 1,923 tonnes at full load. Propulsion machinery consisted of two Admiralty 3-drum boilers, feeding steam to reciprocating vertical triple expansion engines, which provided to drive two propeller shafts. Maximum speed was , and maximum range was at . The ship's company consisted of 140 personnel.