This species is very similar to Zafra selasphora, but has a subtle difference in pattern. The shell is glossy 2.75 to 3 mm long with 3 to 3.25 teleoconch whorls. There is an opaque white band below the suture and a narrow white band one at the height of the suture on the body whorl, and unpigmented areas between and anterior to the narrower white band on the body whorl. The white subsutural band is bordered anteriorly by an interrupted brown spiral line. The unpigmented areas are overlain by a pattern of two brown bands with large white spots; these bands are barely visible over most of the shell, becoming most obvious dorsally behind the aperture edge. There is a weak subsutural groove, and about 14 broad axial ribs on the body whorl. The labial edge is regularly denticulate and the parietal edge is weakly denticulate. The protoconch is off-white, with 3 to 3.25 whorls.
The species is similar to several others. As stated above, it is perhaps most similar to Z. selasphora, but has a subtle difference in colour and pattern; specimens of Z. selasphora are occasionally unpigmented rather than straw-coloured over the middle of the body whorl, and in this case the pattern on the dorsal side of the shell can be used to separate them. There are several species that have an interrupted brown spiral line above the periphery, including Z. selasphora, Z. troglodytes and Z. babajimana. Zafra troglodytes can be differentiated from this species by the spiral grooves high up on the body whorl, particularly noticeable on the ventral side. Zafra babajimana can be differentiated by its more abundant axial ribs, and the smooth area dorsally over a quarter whorl behind the labial edge.