Distinguished from all other species of Mastacembelidae by the following characters: no pterosphenoid bone in the neurocranium; no supracleithral sensory canal; no post-temporal tubules; and an infraorbital series represented by the first infraorbital only. Can be further separated from all other members belonging to Mastacembelus crassus species complex by the following combination of characters (where +1 denotes the presence of a short spine covered by skin and not externally visible): 22-25+1 dorsal spines (vs. 18-21+ in Mastacembelus aviceps and Mastacembelus crassus; eye visible at the surface of the head and relatively well developed, eye diameter 10.0-15.3% HL (vs. 4.8-7.2% HL in Mastacembelus latens; fully pigmented with a color pattern characterized by an oblique bar on the cheek and a series of vertically oriented and irregularly shaped midlateral bars most often present along the body and always present in the post-anal region (vs. depigmented in Mastacembelus latens (Ref. 84205).