The Spring Mountains divide the Pahrump Valley and Amargosa River basins from the Las Vegas Valley watershed, which drains into the Colorado River watershed, by way of Las Vegas Wash into Lake Mead, thus the mountains define part of the boundary of the Great Basin.

The Great Basin Divide, (one of the Great Basin region borders) continues north through the Indian Springs Pass region, then turns due east at the perimeter mountain ranges north of Las Vegas.

The main town in the area is also named Mount Charleston (Nevada), which lies in Kyle Canyon.

The area is typically 30-40 °F cooler than the valleys below, and it is a popular getaway for Las Vegas residents and visitors.

With an area around 860 square miles (2,200 km2), and a vertical range of nearly 2 miles (3.2 km), the mountains encompass a wide variety of habitats, and the biological diversity is probably greater than anywhere else in Nevada; 37 species of trees are known (more than any other Nevadan range), and 600 species of vascular plants have been reported from the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area alone.