C. vicina is known as a blue bottle fly because of the metallic blue-gray coloration of its thorax and abdomen. It is distinguished from the commonly known C. vomitoria by its bright orange cheeks. The blue bottle fly is approximately 10–11 mm in length. The sclerites at the base of the coxa are yellow or orange. By chaetotaxy, the study of bristle arrangement, Calliphorids are characterized by having black bristles on the meron and two to three bristles on the notopleuron.
The similarities between the different species of Calliphora can make identification of immature stages nearly impossible. From the first instar to the pupa stage C. vicina is identical to that of C. vomitoria.