Some ungulates have one hoof on each foot (i.e. horses), while others have two. Ungulates with an even number of toes, known as artiodactyls, like the giraffe and okapi belong to the order Artiodactyla. Many species, including pigs, deer, camels, goats, and many cattle, derived this trait from a long-ago common ancestor, setting them apart from other organisms.

A number of ungulates, including the okapi and giraffe, have evolved a more highly ordered way of digesting their food called rumination. Grouped into the suborder Ruminantia, these ungulates have a four-part stomach that allows them to ferment the plant material they consume and essentially digest their food twice, receiving the maximum amount of nutrients from plant matter that would ordinarily be impossible to digest. This system also allows them to partially regurgitate and rechew their food for maximum effect.

Bony protrusions made of cartilage that have hardened into bone atop the giraffid's skull. They function similarly to horns or antlers except that they are covered in skin and fur and remain permanent throughout the organism's lifetime. Only members of the Giraffidae family have these types of unbranching horns. In giraffes, both males and females possess ossicones, where as in okapi sexual dimorphism is at play, only the males have ossicones and the females instead have small bumps or hair whorls where they would normally be.

Another unusual feature found only in the Giraffidae family is the presence of canine teeth with two very obvious lobes (where the teeth develop). These teeth are only present on the lower jaw of the okapi. This adaptation is what allows them to efficiently strip and tear leaves from various foliage. It is also a clear sign of it's evolutionary history, as not many species of ungulates developed this adaptation.