The Chestnut-bellied Starling lives in Sahelian savanna and shrubland. It has glossy blue-green upperparts and breast, a chestnut belly, and searches for food in small flocks on the ground.
The crown and ear-coverts are charcoal gray; the back, wings, and breast are glossy bronze-green, and the belly is chestnut. The eye is yellowish white, and the sexes look similar.
It mainly eats insects, with some fruit and other food. Small flocks forage on the ground, and breeding groups contain several pairs and birds that help rear the young.
It builds a ball-shaped grass nest about 2–3 m above ground in a thorny tree, and also uses nests of White-billed Buffalo-Weavers.
Juveniles are duller than adults, with brown eyes, a yellowish bill and brown legs.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.