The common planigale is found from the upper Hunter River valley not far north of Sydney along the coast and hinterland to Cape York, and across the Top End of Australia to the Kimberley and a little beyond. It is also found on Groote Eylandt and on Great Keppel Island where its survival is threatened by proposed development. It occupies a wider range of habitat than other planigales, living in sclerophyll forest, rainforest, marshlands, grasslands and even the outer suburbs of Brisbane where it is occasionally trapped mistakenly as a house mouse. Throughout these habitats, it prefers areas with thick cover near water.
