It has contrasting plumage, mostly black. The throat, upper chest, and rump are white, and the underparts are red. The tail of the toco toucan is rounded, and the legs are gray. Toco toucans have a blue eye socket surrounded by another ring of orange skin. The iris is brownish.
Their body is about 55-63 cm long and weighs about 592-760 g. Juveniles have a shorter, yellowish bill without a dark spot at the end.
The species was first described by the German zoologist Philipp Ludwig Statius Müller in 1776.
