Members of the Diplocystidiaceae are small to medium-sized gasteroid fungi, producing enclosed, puffball-like or irregularly globose fruitbodies. Basidiocarps are typically subglobose, pyriform, or tuberous, with a thin to moderately thick peridium that may be smooth, fibrillose, or slightly roughened. The gleba is internal, becoming powdery or granular at maturity.

Astraeus species are earthstars, producing gasteroid basidiocarps that begin as subglobose, subterranean to half-buried balls. At maturity, the outer layer (exoperidium) splits into star-like rays, exposing a central spore sac. The rays are typically thick, leathery, and hygroscopic, opening when moist and closing when dry.