This native cinquefoil has prostrate stems that run on the ground and root at the nodes.  The flowers and leaves rise from the runners on separate stalks. Dwarf cinquefoil features palmately compound leaves, each with 5 narrowly egg-shaped leaflets with sharp teeth on upper halves of the leaflets. From May To July, the plant produces small yellow flowers with 5 rounded petals, surrounding a flattened center with 20 or more stamens, attracting pollinators such as flies and mason bees.

This plant thrives best in full sun to partial shade, well-drained soil, and dry to moist environments such as open fields and woodlands. Its stoloniferous growth allows it to spread across the ground, forming dense mats. P. canadensis is often mistaken for Fragaria virginica (wild strawberry), which has white-petaled flowers, in contrast to the yellow-petaled blooms of cinquefoils. Dwarf cinquefoil more closely resembles common cinquefoil (P. simplex), however dwarf cinquefoil tends to grow lower to the ground, while P. simplex species tend to have slightly larger flowers and longer compound leaves, which may have hairy undersides.  Another notable difference between the two is that in dwarf cinquefoil the lowest flower develops in the axil of the first well-developed leaf, while in common cinquefoil the lowest flower occurs in the second well-developed leaf.