Female banded sugar ants are easily recognised by their black head, orange thorax and the orange-brown band that wraps around their gaster. Males of the species are completely black. The dark sides of the thorax and legs are ferruginous (rusty in colour). The scape (the base of the antenna) and mandibles are black, and the head is wider than the thorax. The thorax is longer than its total width and slightly compressed, and the gaster is covered with tiny black dots. Erect setae are golden in colour and absent under the head but present on the mesosoma. The setae on the tibia and scape are shorter than those on the mesosoma. The anterior of the gaster is lighter in colour compared to the posterior, and the dorsum of the mesosoma is outlined and curved. A worker's metanotum is absent and the eyes are bulging, while a soldier's metanotum is noticeable and the eyes are flat. The wings on the queen are dark, and the stigmata and nerves are yellow. While many ant species have a metapleural gland, the gland is not present in the banded sugar ant; the number of malpighian tubules in workers is 21.