The steppe mammoth probably evolved in Siberia during the early Pleistocene from Mammuthus meridionalis, which was replaced during the middle Pleistocene about 750,000 - 500,000 years ago. It was the first stage in the evolution of the steppe and tundra elephants and an ancestor of the woolly mammoth of the later glacial periods.

Standing up to 4.70 m (15 ft) tall at the shoulder, it is among the largest proboscideans to have ever lived, along with other species of Eurasian mammoth, North American mammoth and Deinotherium. Its spiral-shaped tusks could be as long as 5.2 metres (17 ft) in old bulls. About 250.000 years ago, the woolly mammoth, which derived in northern Asia from the steppe mammoth, appeared in Europe, and replaced its progenitor completely.

Its skull was shorter than that of the great southern elephant. The males had spiral tusks with a recurved tip, while the females had thinner and only slightly curved tusks. The tusks grew to considerable lengths and the largest one known must have measured about 5 m. on a living animal.