This estrildid finch is a common resident breeding bird in the drier regions of the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent.

The Indian silverbill was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae.

A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2020 found that these two silverbills formed a clade that was basal to the members of Lonchura.

[7][8] The adult Indian silverbill is 11–11.5 cm long and has a conical silver-grey bill, buff-brown upperparts, white underparts, buffy flanks and dark wings.

It feeds mainly on seeds, but also takes insects and has been known to visit nectar bearing flowers, such as those of Erythrina trees.

It has been accidentally introduced into many other parts of the world and has established itself in Jordan, Israel, Kuwait, Oman, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt since 2019, United States, Virgin Islands (possibly extinct) and Nice (southern France).

The nest, an untidy ball of grasses with an opening on the side, is placed in low shrubs, often on thorny Acacia.