It is distributed in the waters of the Atlantic off the coast of Europe and the Mediterranean Sea. It lives exclusively in shallow water. The edible oyster has flat shell flaps, is asymmetrically irregular with noticeable uneven rings. The upper shell is more convex. Its bottom shell is almost flat, smooth or with faintly noticeable radial wrinkles. The coloration is dirty gray, with purple spots on the upper shell and red-brown on the bottom shell. Usually grows up to 15 cm in diameter, less often up to 20 cm.