The fur of the Iriomote cat is mostly dark gray and light brown, with lighter hair on the belly and insides of the limbs. Hair along the jaw is white. There are two dark brown spots on each cheek. There are 5–7 stripes spanning from the forehead to the back of the head, but, unlike the leopard cat, the stripes stop before reaching the shoulders. Dark brown spots cover the sides of the body, and there are 3–4 bands of irregular stripes on the chest. The tail is dark brown; darker spots pattern the back side of the tail while the underside of the tail is solid. The tip of the tail is dark.