Noasaurids were generally small and lightly built compared to their larger abelisaurid relatives within Ceratosauria, and the family shows a similar Gondwanan distribution -- fossils are known chiefly from South America, Africa, and Madagascar. Body plans varied more within the family than in most theropod groups of comparable size, with some genera showing unusually specialized limb or jaw anatomy.
Masiakasaurus, from Madagascar, is the family's most distinctive member: its front teeth angle forward out of the jaw rather than pointing straight down, a specialization most researchers interpret as an adaptation for spearing small, slippery prey like fish or insects. Noasaurus, from Argentina, names the family and was among the first noasaurids recognized as a distinct lineage separate from the larger abelisaurids.