The Cactus Canastero is endemic to Peru where it is distributed on the western slope of the Andes in south-west Peru. There is a tiny area near Trujillo called Cerro Campana, where these photos were taken, with a disjunct population. See the distribution map at Birdlife International.

It is found in arid montane scrub with bushes and columnar cactus between 800 and 2,400 metres. It is similar to Cordilleran Canastero Asthenes modesta but has a longer bill.