They are the typical large grasshoppers (and in some cases migratory "locusts") in North America.

The largest grasshoppers of this genus can reach nearly 5 cm (2.0 in) in length, but most are smaller.

Melanoplus species eat grasses of all kinds, as well as leafy and grassy agricultural crops and garden plants.

They feed on the leaves, and sometimes fruit, flowers, and buds, as well as tree bark.

Many of the more notable agricultural pest grasshoppers belong here, including the Rocky Mountain locust, the most significant insect pest of the 19th century Great Plains, but now extinct.