Thelocactus leucacanthus grows in clusters or forms large multi-headed cushions up to 80 cm (31 in) wide.

Occasionally, a single central spine, yellowish-white to nearly black, grows up to 5 cm (2.0 in) long, with 6 to 20 radial spines that are 7 mm (0.28 in) long and straight or slightly curved.

[2] This species grows at elevations of 1200 to 1900 meters in the succulent bush forests of Hidalgo and Querétaro, Mexico.

[3] First described as Echinocactus leucacanthus by Ludwig Karl Georg Pfeiffer in 1837, it was reclassified as Thelocactus leucacanthus by Nathaniel Lord Britton and Joseph Nelson Rose in 1923.

[4] Its name is derived from the Greek words leukos ("white") and akanthos ("thorn").