The church stands on a headland jutting into Lake Hornavan, a striking lakeside setting that has long shaped the way visitors approach the building. It was originally built as a timbered cruciform church, painted red, with its entrance facing the water.
A major remodelling in 1894 gave the church much of its present character. The building was extended and, unusually, the chancel was moved from the eastern to the western end—making Arjeplogs Kyrka one of only two churches in Sweden arranged this way. Towards the end of the nineteenth century the church was further transformed into a nave church with the addition of a tower, taking on the National Romantic appearance still visible today. The exterior was originally clad in wooden shingles; the roofs are now covered in copper sheeting, though shingles were used there previously. In 1896 the church was painted the pink shade it retains.
An earlier church stood on the site before this one: timber for it was cut in 1641 on the orders of Queen Kristina, and it was consecrated in January 1642. That first building had a compacted earth floor beneath which burials once took place, a practice discontinued during the eighteenth century.
Among the church's furnishings is a pulpit thought to date from 1694, attributed to Nils Fluur, and an altarpiece painted in 1770 by Anders Hellberg of Piteå. In 2009 a set of vestments decorated with Sámi motifs, including the Maria maljan symbol found in Sámi silverwork, was created by sisters Monika and Ulla Britta Unnes and introduced for use in the church. The organ dates from 1960, built by Grönlunds Orgelbyggeri of Gammelstad.