Richard Burgi was born on July 30, 1958, in Montclair, New Jersey (a town roughly 15 miles west of New York City), to a musical family: His father was a drummer, his mother was a singer, and one of his three siblings became a drummer. Burgi started participating in community theater during his youth; after graduating from Montclair High School, he traveled throughout Europe for a while.

Burgi began his acting career in the mid-1980s, and from 1986 through 1989 he had recurring roles on two daytime staples, Another World (1964) and As the World Turns (1956); he also appeared in one episode of One Life to Live (1968).

Throughout the 1990s, Burgi continued working steadily in television series, along them Days of Our Lives (1965) and the crime drama The Sentinel (1996), where he was one of the leads, Det. James Ellison. He also had roles (some one-time, some recurring) on 24 (2001), Judging Amy (1999), Point Pleasant (2005), Las Vegas (2003), Chuck (2007), One Tree Hill (2003) and Desperate Housewives (2004).

Burgi's film work includes the sci-fi "alien bugs vs. humans" sequel Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation (2004), Cellular (2004), the Jim Carrey comedy Fun with Dick and Jane (2005), the Cameron Diaz comedy In Her Shoes (2005), Hostel: Part II (2007), and Friday the 13th (2009). In 2013, he landed a recurring role as D.A. Dan Russell on the series Body of Proof (2011).

Burgi is married to Liliana Lopez and is the father of two sons, Jack (b. 1996) and Sam (b. 2000).