Avicennia alba forms a low, dense bushy crown often branching near the base of the trunk. The shrub does not grow more than 20 m. The dark green leaves, 15 cm long by 5 cm wide, have a silvery gray under leaf and grow in opposites. Orange yellow flowers, borne in a racemose inflorescence, have a diameter of 3 to 4 mm when expanded. The bark is smooth, greenish black, finely fissured and does not flake. The fruits are grayish green and conical in shape extended into a beak up to 4 cm long. Avicennia alba grows in dry riverbanks to muddy portions of the seashore.

Avicennia alba is also found in Singapore at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.