The female is a small, slim bird, averaging about in length. Sungrebes have lobed toes, and the bare skin of their feet and legs are boldly banded in yellow and black. The body plumage is mostly varying shades of reddish brown, while the head and neck are strikingly patterned with a black crown and nape and white stripes along the sides of its neck, as well as a white throat and chin. The long tail (almost a third of the total length) extends well beyond the body in flight, and sits fanned out on or just below the surface of the water while the bird swims. Females have a rufous patch on the side of the face that brightens to a cinnamon-orange color during the breeding season. Also during the breeding season, her eye ring becomes brighter in color and her lower mandible goes from dark red to bright scarlet. Slightly shorter on average than the male, with a slightly shorter wingspan, , but slightly more powerfully-built with a higher average mass, .