diff --git a/jax/_src/api.py b/jax/_src/api.py
index 5fb5b636a275..a4e30643b5ea 100644
--- a/jax/_src/api.py
+++ b/jax/_src/api.py
@@ -1089,8 +1089,8 @@ def vmap(fun: F,
 
   Args:
     fun: Function to be mapped over additional axes.
-    in_axes: An integer, None, or (nested) standard Python container
-      (tuple/list/dict) thereof specifying which input array axes to map over.
+    in_axes: An integer, None, or sequence of values specifying which input
+      array axes to map over.
 
       If each positional argument to ``fun`` is an array, then ``in_axes`` can
       be an integer, a None, or a tuple of integers and Nones with length equal
@@ -1101,11 +1101,12 @@ def vmap(fun: F,
       range ``[-ndim, ndim)`` for each array, where ``ndim`` is the number of
       dimensions (axes) of the corresponding input array.
 
-      If the positional arguments to ``fun`` are container (pytree) types, the
-      corresponding element of ``in_axes`` can itself be a matching container,
-      so that distinct array axes can be mapped for different container
-      elements. ``in_axes`` must be a container tree prefix of the positional
-      argument tuple passed to ``fun``. See this link for more detail:
+      If the positional arguments to ``fun`` are container (pytree) types, ``in_axes``
+      must be a sequence with length equal to the number of positional arguments to
+      ``fun``, and for each argument the corresponding element of ``in_axes`` can
+      be a container with a matching pytree structure specifying the mapping of its
+      container elements. In other words, ``in_axes`` must be a container tree prefix
+      of the positional argument tuple passed to ``fun``. See this link for more detail:
       https://jax.readthedocs.io/en/latest/pytrees.html#applying-optional-parameters-to-pytrees
 
       Either ``axis_size`` must be provided explicitly, or at least one
@@ -1233,18 +1234,23 @@ def vmap(fun: F,
     # rather than raising an error. https://github.com/google/jax/issues/2367
     in_axes = tuple(in_axes)
 
-  if not all(type(l) is int or type(l) in batching.spec_types
-             for l in tree_leaves(in_axes)):
+  if not (in_axes is None or type(in_axes) in {int, tuple, *batching.spec_types}):
+    raise TypeError("vmap in_axes must be an int, None, or a tuple of entries corresponding "
+                    f"to the positional arguments passed to the function, but got {in_axes}.")
+  if not all(type(l) in {int, *batching.spec_types} for l in tree_leaves(in_axes)):
     raise TypeError("vmap in_axes must be an int, None, or (nested) container "
                     f"with those types as leaves, but got {in_axes}.")
-  if not all(type(l) is int or type(l) in batching.spec_types
-               for l in tree_leaves(out_axes)):
+  if not all(type(l) in {int, *batching.spec_types} for l in tree_leaves(out_axes)):
     raise TypeError("vmap out_axes must be an int, None, or (nested) container "
                     f"with those types as leaves, but got {out_axes}.")
 
   @wraps(fun, docstr=docstr)
   @api_boundary
   def vmap_f(*args, **kwargs):
+    if isinstance(in_axes, tuple) and len(in_axes) != len(args):
+      raise ValueError("vmap in_axes must be an int, None, or a tuple of entries corresponding "
+                       "to the positional arguments passed to the function, "
+                       f"but got {len(in_axes)=}, {len(args)=}")
     args_flat, in_tree  = tree_flatten((args, kwargs), is_leaf=batching.is_vmappable)
     f = lu.wrap_init(fun)
     flat_fun, out_tree = batching.flatten_fun_for_vmap(f, in_tree)
diff --git a/jax/_src/api_util.py b/jax/_src/api_util.py
index 9c098c99b80b..5f5e631005a9 100644
--- a/jax/_src/api_util.py
+++ b/jax/_src/api_util.py
@@ -404,7 +404,6 @@ def flatten_axes(name, treedef, axis_tree, *, kws=False, tupled_args=False):
   # the given treedef, build a complete axis spec tree with the same structure
   # and return the flattened result
   # TODO(mattjj,phawkins): improve this implementation
-
   proxy = object()
   dummy = tree_unflatten(treedef, [object()] * treedef.num_leaves)
   axes = []
diff --git a/tests/api_test.py b/tests/api_test.py
index 5bf712d9f9ec..6fb47b568f39 100644
--- a/tests/api_test.py
+++ b/tests/api_test.py
@@ -2981,15 +2981,31 @@ def f(dct, x, y):
     out2 = api.vmap(f, [None, 0, 0])(dictionary, x, y)
     self.assertAllClose(out1, out2)
 
+  def test_vmap_in_axes_non_tuple_error(self):
+    # https://github.com/google/jax/issues/18548
+    with self.assertRaisesRegex(
+        TypeError,
+        re.escape("vmap in_axes must be an int, None, or a tuple of entries corresponding "
+                  "to the positional arguments passed to the function, but got {'a': 0}.")):
+      jax.vmap(lambda x: x['a'], in_axes={'a': 0})
+
+  def test_vmap_in_axes_wrong_length_tuple_error(self):
+    # https://github.com/google/jax/issues/18548
+    with self.assertRaisesRegex(
+        ValueError,
+        re.escape("vmap in_axes must be an int, None, or a tuple of entries corresponding to the "
+                  "positional arguments passed to the function, but got len(in_axes)=2, len(args)=1")):
+      jax.vmap(lambda x: x['a'], in_axes=(0, {'a': 0}))({'a': jnp.zeros((3, 3))})
+
   def test_vmap_in_axes_tree_prefix_error(self):
     # https://github.com/google/jax/issues/795
     value_tree = jnp.ones(3)
     self.assertRaisesRegex(
         ValueError,
         "vmap in_axes specification must be a tree prefix of the corresponding "
-        r"value, got specification \(0, 0\) for value tree "
+        r"value, got specification \(\[0\],\) for value tree "
         + re.escape(f"{tree_util.tree_structure((value_tree,))}."),
-        lambda: api.vmap(lambda x: x, in_axes=(0, 0))(value_tree)
+        lambda: api.vmap(lambda x: x, in_axes=([0],))(value_tree)
     )
 
   def test_vmap_in_axes_leaf_types(self):