The Eastern Yellow Robin is distributed in eastern and south-eastern Australia from Cooktown, Queensland to Naracoorte, South Australia. It is found mainly in coastal mountain forests but also in woodland with scrub and even gardens. It is an altitudinal migrant moving down the mountains in winter.

It feeds on ants, bugs and other insects which it catches mainly on the ground often perching sideways on a sapling about a metre or so above the ground while looking out for prey.