This species is found in the Indo-Pacific region. It inhabits various coral reef environments at depths ranging from near the surface down to 120 meters (390 feet). The green jobfish has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution. It ranges from the Red Sea and the east coast of Africa—extending south to northeastern South Africa—across the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, where it is found as far north as southern Japan, as far south as Australia and Rapa Iti, and as far east as Hawaii.