The Puerto Rican tanager is a small passerine, typically measuring between 18 and 20 cm (7–8 in) in length and weighing around 36 g. Both males and females are olive-brown above with pale grey to white underparts.

The most frequently heard noise emitted by the Puerto Rican tanager is a harsh call note often described as a chewp or chuck.

[3][4] They are typically the nucleus species in mixed feeding flocks, especially in the winter when neotropical migrants are present in Puerto Rico.

[5] Puerto Rican tanagers are strong flyers, but don't often fly long distances, preferring to make short flights through the canopy or brush.

[6][7] The species has been reported to occasionally consume lizards and the nestling of other birds, but most of its diet consists of spiders, insects, centipedes, snails, and various fruits.

Deforestation has contributed to fragmentation of the population, which once stretched across the entire central cordillera, but is now confined to the preserved areas and higher peaks.