An important feature is the presence of sphingolipids (mainly 2′-hydroxymyristoyl dihydrosphingosine 1-glucuronic acid, "SGL-1") in the outer membrane of the cell wall.

A microbial community with abundant Sphingomonadaceae members can degrade bisphenol A with a constant rate.

[10][7] Bacteria within Sphingomonadaceae family are distributed in various environments, such as water,[5] soil,[11][12] sediment.

[14][b] Sphingomicrobium Sphingopyxis Sphingorhabdus Parasphingopyxis Novosphingopyxis Blastomonas Parasphingorhabdus Rhizorhapis Sphingobium Stakelama Hephaestia Sphingomonas Allosphingosinicella Rhizorhabdus Erythrobacteraceae Some members of the Sphingomonadaceae commonly exist in human-impacted environments, including drinking water systems,[15][5] hospital and household tap water,[16] and medical devices.

[7] Some species can protect plants from disease-causing pathogens such as Thielaviopsis basicola, and Rhizoctonia solani.