Ammonium chloride consists of white crystals that are also available in more or less worked up rods or lumps. They sublime when heated; the substance changes directly from being solid to gas. The gas does not consist of ammonium chloride molecules but ammonia and hydrogen chloride. This shows that the salt decomposes easily. When stored, ammonia is continuously emitted and the substance gradually becomes more acidic.

Sublimated ammonium chloride can be found in cavities in the earth close to volcanoes. The salt can be manufactured industrially directly from ammonia and hydrochloric acid, but that is often not the most favorable method from an economic point of view. Ammonium chloride is obtained as a by-product in different chemical processes, particularly from the Solvay process for production of sodium carbonate from sodium chloride, ammonia, carbon dioxide and water.