Lubov is an aristocratic Russian landowner returning home after spending five years in France following the accidental drowning of her young son. She is kind, sentimental, and generous, but she is also financially reckless. She maintains a lavish lifestyle of expensive meals and generous tips despite facing bankruptcy and the imminent auction of her family's estate. Deeply nostalgic, she idealizes her childhood and ignores the shifting social realities of late 19th-century Russia.

Lopakhin is a wealthy merchant whose father and grandfather labored as enslaved serfs on Lubov's estate. Practical and forward-thinking, he represents the newly emerging middle class and tries to offer Lubov a viable business plan to save her property from auction. Despite his economic success, he feels self-conscious about his peasant roots and lack of education. He retains a deep affection for Lubov, who comforted him when he was a beaten child.

Lubov's 17-year-old daughter traveled to France to bring her mother back to Russia. She is adored by the household and initially shares her mother's deep affection for the estate and the cherry orchard. However, she represents a younger generation that is increasingly open to progress, heavily influenced by her conversations with Peter Trofimov about Russia's future.

Varya is Lubov's 24-year-old adopted daughter. She serves as the estate's manager during her mother's absence. She is highly responsible, practical, and constantly stressed by the family's dire financial situation. She attempts to rein in the chaotic spending of the household and enforce discipline among the servants, though she is largely ignored. She harbors a desire to enter a nunnery if she could ever afford the entry cost.

Gaev is Lubov's brother and a fellow aristocrat who shares his sister's impractical approach to their financial ruin. He relies heavily on the aging servant Fiers to dress him. He concocts vague, unrealistic schemes to secure loans to save the estate rather than listening to practical business advice.

Trofimov is the former tutor of Lubov's young son who drowned years earlier. He is a perpetual university student who philosophizes about progress, hard work, and the need for Russia to move away from the oppressive legacy of serfdom. He claims to be above petty romance and focuses entirely on his political and social ideals, frequently lecturing the other characters on their laziness.

Fiers is the 87-year-old loyal servant of the estate. He represents the old world and entirely rejects the emancipation of the serfs, which he refers to as a terrible misfortune. He insists on maintaining his traditional role in the household and treats the middle-aged Gaev as if he were still a child in need of care.

Charlotta is Anya's eccentric governess whose parents were traveling performers. Raised by a German woman after her parents died, she does not know her true age or origins and feels deeply isolated from those around her. She masks her loneliness by performing bizarre parlor tricks for the household.

Epikhodov is the estate's clerk. He is universally known by the nickname "two-and-twenty troubles" due to his constant clumsiness and terrible luck. Despite his comical exterior and pompous claims of being highly educated, he harbors a dark melancholy and carries a revolver, openly questioning whether he wants to continue living.

Dunyasha is a young housemaid who dresses and acts more like a wealthy lady than a servant. She is highly self-absorbed, easily flustered, and far more interested in romance, gossip, and powdering her face than in completing her household duties.

Yasha is Lubov's young valet who traveled with her from Paris. He considers himself highly cultured and superior to the other servants, viewing rural Russia as uneducated and uncivilized. He is dismissive of those around him, openly disrespectful to the older staff, and primarily seeks a way to return to France.

Simeonov-Pischin is a neighboring landowner who, like Lubov, faces severe financial difficulties. He spends much of his time desperately asking acquaintances to loan him money to pay the interest on his mortgages. He maintains an unfailingly optimistic but frantic demeanor despite his crippling debt.