An okapi looks like a stumpy giraffe with stripes on the rear legs and rump like those of a zebra. In fact they are closely related to giraffes. Like a giraffe, the okapi's long prehensile tongue enables it to grip and pull leaves. The tongue is about 35 cm in length and long enough for the animal to lick its own eyelids as part of its fastidious grooming. The male also has skin-covered horns like a giraffe, however unlike a giraffe, the neck is much shorter. Okapis stand about 170 cm tall and weigh about 230 kg.

The okapi is usually a solitary animal, although when the female is in breeding condition, she is shadowed by a male. Sometimes two males become interested in the same female, in which case they will fight, wrestling each other with their necks, like giraffes, and butting each other.