Salsa is usually a partner dance, although there are recognized solo steps and some forms are danced in groups of couples, with frequent exchanges of partner. Improvisation and social dancing are important elements of Salsa but it appears as a performance dance too.

The name "Salsa" is the Spanish word for sauce, implying a spicy flavor. The Salsa aesthetic is very flirtatious and sensuous. Salsa is danced on a core rhythm that lasts for two measures of four beats each. The basic step typically uses three steps each measure. Typically the music involves complex African percussion rhythms.

Salsa is a slot or spot dance, i.e. the partners do not need to travel over the dance floor but usually occupy a fixed area of the dance floor, rotating around one another and exchanging places. Traveling is not ruled out, but is more used in a staged salsa performance. In a social setting it is bad etiquette to occupy too much floor by traveling.