These are data associated with the publication, "Riparian buffers made of mature oil palms have inconsistent impacts on oil palm ecosystems". Data were collected from industrial oil palm plantations in Riau, Sumatra, Indonesia, in collaboration with Sinar Mas Agro Resources Technology and Research Institute (SMARTRI). The data were collected across a chronosequence of oil palm, in areas that were within, near, and far from riparian buffers made of mature oil palms. Specifically, we include data on environmental conditions (Vegetation height, canopy openness, variation in canopy openness, vegetation composition, soil temperature), arthropod biodiversity (total arthropod abundance and order-level composition in the canopy, understory, and ground microhabitats), and spider biodiversity (spider abundance, species richness, and species-level composition in the canopy, understory, and ground microhabitats).