The Java spitting cobra is a medium to large sized snake and has long cervical ribs, capable of expanding to form a hood when threatened.

The head is elliptical, slightly different from the neck with a short rounded snout and large nostrils.

Verification is still required as to whether or not this species of cobra also occurs in the islands of Timor and Sulawesi.

[7][8] Scientist De Hass did research on this species in two districts of western Java: in Nandjoeng Djaja, where it was relatively uncommon and in Bandjarwangi, where the altitude is 900 metres (3,000 ft) it was not recorded.

Dunn (1927b) reported specimens taken on Komodo from sea level to 650 metres (2,130 ft), the highest altitude this species has been found at.

[9] The Javan spitting cobra is found mostly in tropical forests and wet forest, but the species adapts well to a wide variety of habitats across its range on the islands, including more arid regions,[5] dry woodlands, and cultivated hill country.

[7] In the island of Komodo, it has been observed in a variety of habitats including dry savanna and deciduous monsoon forest.

It has also been reported that specimens in the island of Komodo are reluctant to spit, but field observations suggest the opposite.

Herpetologist Shine Boeadi, in a study published in 1998, measured and dissected 80 Javan specimens of this species and found that most prey items were mammals.

The IV LD50 of the two toxins are 0.09 mg/g and 0.07 mg/g, respectively, and they possess amino acid sequences similar to those of other cobra venom neurotoxins.