Sagittaria sanfordii is an aquatic perennial herb up to 130 centimetres (51 inches) tall, growing from a spherical tuber.

The leaves are very often submerged, variable in shape, usually long and strap-shaped or narrowly lanceolate.

Female flowers each have a spherical cluster of pistils which develops into a head of tiny fruits.

[3][4] In California, it is known from a few scattered occurrences on the North Coast and in the Central Valley.

Many occurrences previously noted in the Central Valley and in southern California have been extirpated as the plant's aquatic habitat has been lost to human activity.