Adults are 13–15 cm (5.1–5.9 in) in length, brown above with white underparts, a small bill, and a forked tail.

They are closely related and very similar to the southern rough-winged swallow, Stelgidopteryx ruficollis, but that species has a more contrasting rump, and the ranges do not quite overlap.

[11] The northern rough-winged swallow is native to Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Puerto Rico, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the United States.

While this is true, the populations in Mexico and further south seem to be non-migratory, although local post-breeding movements do occur.

[5] The nests are found in burrows located in soil banks,[12] very occasionally caves and trees, and in human-made cavities such as gutters and tubes.

[5] The nest itself is built by this species,[12] and made with a variety of fibres, including grasses, leaves, rootlets, twigs, bark, and pine needles.

[5] In the southern parts of its range, this bird lays its eggs earlier; for example, from mid-April to mid-May in Costa Rica.

[12] The northern rough-winged swallow migrates to the Gulf Coast of the United States and south to Central America for winter.

[5] When the breeding season is finished, they usually form large flocks and roost together in marshes and similar environments.

[1] In addition, this species is estimated to be composed of about 15 million individual birds, so it is not vulnerable under the population size criterion.

This swallow has been found to adapt well to humans and sometimes nests in artificial cavities created by them.