The range forms a part of the main chain of the Alps.

In the west and south the Murtörl mountain pass and the River Mur separate them from the Hohe Tauern mountain range, while in the east and north the River Enns and the Schober Pass marks the border to the Northern Limestone Alps.

Some notable summits of the range are: The Lower Tauern mark the approximate eastern limit of the continuous ice sheet in the Alps during the Würm glaciation.

Eastern parts of the group were therefore unglaciated, and served as an important refugium for silicicolous plants.

A number of skiing resorts are situated in the Lower Tauern, including Obertauern and Schladming.