Common chocolate chip lichen is a foliose lichen with apothecia that are common, stalkless, and embedded into upper surface and red-brown to dark brown discs. Its thallus is foliose, with round lobes up to 20mm across. Lobe margins are mostly smooth, though occasionally cracked. The upper surface is bright green often with pruina, the lower surface is pale brown or white, rhizines are occasional.
Its sunken apothecia distinguish it from Peltigera species, Psora species, and Nephroma species.
