Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay (B).
Breeds east of Andes in central, southern and eastern Brazil, eastern Bolivia, northern Argentina and northern Uruguay; occurs also, probably only as non-breeding visitor, in Amazon Basin of south-eastern Colombia, eastern Peru, northern Bolivia and western Brazil.
 
Population
Estimated population is unknown (2010).
Large Elaenia (Elaenia spectabilis) [XC421367]
by Jacob Wijpkema from Sucupira - Santa Cruz Cabr\u00e1lia, Bahia, Brazil (call)
Large Elaenia (Elaenia) [XC446474]
by Fernando Igor de Godoy from Boyuibe Road, Bolivia (call)
Subspecies
May be closely related to Yellow-bellied Elaenia (Elaenia flavogaster) and formerly treated as conspecific, but ranges overlap widely in Brazil, and they have different voices. Sometimes considered conspecific with Noronha Elaenia (Elaenia ridleyana), but significant differences in vocalizations.