Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela.
Extreme southern Costa Rica, Panama, and forested South American lowlands south to west-central Ecuador and, east of Andes, from Colombia, Venezuela, the Guianas and Amazonian Brazil (east to Maranhío) south to eastern Peru and northern Bolivia.
 
Population
Estimated population is unknown (2010).
Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet (Tyrannulus elatus) [XC494013]
by JAYRSON ARAUJO DE OLIVEIRA from Presidente Figueiredo, Amazonas, Brazil (song)
Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet (Tyrannulus elatus) [XC258693]
by Olaf Jahn from Sucumb\u00edos: 'La Selva Jungle Lodge', n bank R\u00edo Napo, Ecuador (song, songs)
Subspecies
No subspecies.
Monotypic genus, in many respects transitional between Phyllomyias and Myiopagis, but anatomical evidence suggests closer relationship to latter. Birds from Panama named as subspecies panamensis and birds from northern Bolivia as benii. However, in examination of large series of specimens both considered indistinguishable from other populations.