The Kentucky Warbler breeds in the eastern USA and winters from eastern Mexico through Central America to Panama with occasional sightings in nearby Colombia and Venezuela. See the distribution map at Birdlife International. It moves south in August / September and returns north in March / April.

It breeds in mature deciduous forest and winters in tropical rainforest in both cases to be found in or close to dense undergrowth.

Its call is a low, sharp "chup"