The soles of the feet are haired and the Mexican spiny pocket mouse is unique in its genus in possessing five rather than six tubercles on the hind foot.

Its range extends from just north of the Rio Grande southwards to the Mexican Plateau, its southernmost limit being Zapotitlán in the state of Oaxaca.

In regions where their ranges overlap, it occurs in drier, upland habitats than the painted spiny pocket mouse (Liomys pictus).

[4] This pocket mouse is nocturnal and spends the day in a burrow, the entrance of which may be covered with leaves or an earth mound.

[1] In laboratory studies it was found that this pocket mouse was unable to maintain its body weight unless it had access to water.