It is native to south-eastern Europe and south-western Asia, including Italy, the Balkans, Ukraine, Turkey, Caucasus, Iraq, and Iran.

It is a highly variable species, with flowers in shades of pale mauve or white, often with darker stripes on the outer tepals.

[2] Each blooming corm typical produces two flowers, thus the species epithet "biflorus".

[5] According to the taxonomic classification proposed by Brian Mathew in 1982, C. biflorus falls within the series Biflori of the section Nudiscapus within the genus Crocus.

The cultivar 'Blue Pearl' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.