The bearded seal is large, with an adult body length of 2~2.5m, a male weighing 250~300kg, and a female weighing over 425kg. Because of their small heads, their front flippers are relatively short, making their bodies appear longer. The head is round and slightly narrow, and the eyes are relatively small and close together. The muzzle is broad and fleshy, with the nostrils far apart. The tentacles are numerous, long, dense, and light-colored, unlike other arctic seals that are rosary-shaped. The tentacles are straight when wet and curled inwards at the top when dry. The name "bearded seal" comes from this particularly prominent beard. The front flippers are short, relatively wide, square, or slightly rounded. Each toe is equal in length or the third toe is slightly longer, and the claws are very strong. Bearded seals have four retractable nipples instead of two. This is what distinguishes it from all other Arctic seal species.
The adult body is grey-brown, with the upper part being slightly darker than the lower part. The face and front flippers are often rust-colored. The cub has a long, dark, curly sweater with up to 4 light-colored horizontal bands from the back to the top of the head. The muzzle and around the eyes are gray. Sometimes there is a light black stripe starting from the top of the head between the eyes.
The skull is thick, broad and short, with no sagittal ridge. The palate is more arched and higher, and the snout is broad and round. The orbits are large and there is no supraorbital process. The two nasal bones are inserted backward between the two frontal bones. The bleb is enlarged and consists of the external tympanic bone and the internal tympanic bone. The mastoid bone is not very developed, intersects with the zygomatic process, and has not healed. Each upper incisor has no transverse groove, and the first posterior canine tooth of the mandible has 4 cusps. Gear type: I 3/2, C 1/1, PC 5/5.
Note (I: incisor, C: canine, PC: posterior canine)