Agave sisalana is a succulent plant that forms short-stemmed rosettes of stiff sword-shaped leaves with spinless margins and a red-brown terminal spine. The stem grows up to 3.3 feet (1 m) tall. Leaves are glaucous when young, later dark blue-green. They are up to 5 feet (1.5 m) long and 6 inches (15 cm) wide. The inflorescence is a large panicle with flowers arranged on the terminal portion in dense clusters. It grows up to 20 feet (6 m) tall.

The flowers are yellowish-green with reddish filaments. They do not produce seeds but form bulbils, which are used for propagation. The bulbils are borne in the axils of the bracteoles of the inflorescence after flowering.