American Simmentals are coloured differently being predominantly black or red like the example photos below, the lighter colours are referred to as Fleckvieh.
Simmental can be horned or polled, if horned horns are up turned, another distinguishing feature is that they have a heavy dewlap. They have a large frame with good muscling with cows at approximately 135-150cm tall and the bulls at 150-160cm. Their weight can vary on the use of their use but cows can weigh around 700-900kgs and bulls 1300kgs.

Generations of selective breeding, with the objective of maximizing milk and beef production at minimum cost, have created a balanced hereditary proponent that is highly adaptable, heavily muscled, fine lined, and well conformed. Docility and good mothering traits are other characteristics of the breed.

The breed adapts easily to the most varied conditions from rural small-holder to large extensive ranching operations.

Simmentals are bred all over the world for their high beef yields. In breeding however it allows variations in emphasis from mothering ability to beefing qualities. The heavy muscling, length and overall size and weight of the animal are combined to produce a well fleshed carcass of solid red meat with a minimum of waste fat.

In crossbreeding, the Simmental has proved very successful. It provides good growth, a large frame and thus a better beef yield to its crossbred progeny. It improves the quality of the meat with white fat and excellent marbling. It improves the milk yield, resulting in strong development of the calves in suckler herds.
Statistics

High, long term fertility
Longevity
Calving ease
Short intervals between calving
Excellent mothering ability
Good grazing ability
Early maturity
Good growth rates
Easy to handle
Feed conversion and efficiency
Uniformity in type & colour