Belongs to the monotypic genus.

Dioecious shrubs or trees to 20 m tall; branches estipulate. Leaves alternate, distichous. Inflorescences axillary; staminate inflorescences thyrsoid, 4- to 10-flowered. Fruits drupaceous, single-seeded, obovoidal; exocarp fleshy. Seeds globose; endosperm copious.

Staufferia is distinguished from Okoubaka by the smaller inflorescences and fruit morphology. Phylogenetically, it forms a robust clade with the genera Pilgerina, Pyrularia, Scleropyrum and Okoubaka (Zhou & al., 2019).