This species is widespread in Europe (Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, Croatia, Germany, Finland, Greece, Italy, former Yugoslavia, Norway, Russia, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland, Spain, Czech Republic, Slovakia), North Africa (Tunisia), and in the Near East (Israel).

[2][3] Machimus setibarbus can reach a body length of about 16–27 millimetres (0.63–1.06 in).

[3] These robber flies have a face beard with distinctly stout bristles and four-eight scutellar marginal bristles.

Moreover front femur do not show ventrally distinct stout bristles, but only hairs.

This article related to members of the fly family Asilidae is a stub.