Bushtits are active birds with long tails compared to their size, moving almost constantly while they forage for insects in shrubs and trees.

Bushtits are found in a wide range of habitats, including on occasion sagebrush steppe and other arid shrublands, but are most common in mixed woodland.

Most species in this family live in mountainous habitats in and around the Himalayas, and all are found in Eurasia except the American bushtit, which is native to western North America.

The species in this family are generally not migratory, although the long-tailed tit is prone to dispersing in the northern edges of its range (particularly in Siberia).

[1] They are small birds, measuring 9 to 14 cm (3.5–5.5 in) in length, including the relatively long tail, and weighing just 4.5 to 9 g (0.16–0.32 oz).

Their plumage is typically dull grey or brown, although some species have white markings and the long-tailed tit has some pinkish colour.

[1] The family generally has a monogamous breeding system; however, there is some evidence that the American bushtit may be frequently polyandrous and occasionally polygynandrous or polygynous.

[1][3][7][4] Aegithalids make domed or hanging, bag-like nests of woven cobwebs and lichen, which they line with feathers.

[12] The pygmy bushtit is placed in this family because it moves around in flocks and its nests resemble the long-tailed tits', but information about it is so scanty that the placement is only provisional.