This species can be found in lowlands and foothills, as well as xerophytic vegetation and savannahs in semi-arid regions in the north and humid evergreen forest in Caribbean lowlands of Central America, and in gardens with pools. It can also be found in the vicinity of ponds, pools, canals, and flooded fields (Bartlett and Bartlett 1999). Individuals hide underground, under tree bark, in leaf axils, or in tree holes when inactive. It breeds in ponds by larval development.

This species geographic range is from extreme southern Texas, U.S.A. southward along the Atlantic versant through Mexico, Guatemela, Belize, Honduras and El Salvador, to Costa Rica. Along the Pacific versant, it occurs from southern Sonora, Mexico southward to central Costa Rica. Its occurrence in Panama is uncertain. Following morphological analysis, subpopulations from the Atlantic versant from northeastern Honduras through eastern Nicaragua to Limón Province, eastern Costa Rica have been reassigned to Smilisca manisorum, although the contact zones of S. baudini and S. manisorum have been incompletely elucidated (McCranie 2017). Subpopulations reported from Bexar and Refugio counties in southeast-central Texas are seemingly introduced, and it is unclear if these subpopulations remain extant (Strecker 1908, Murphy and Drewes 1976,  Garrett and Barker 1987, Dixon 2000, Lannoo et al. 2005).  Raun and Gelbauch (1972) state that both the Bexar and Refugio county records are erroneous, and further taxonomic work is needed to clarify the status of this species in Texas. This species occurs at elevations between 0–1,610 m asl.

Conservation Actions In-Place
This species occurs in many protected areas throughout its wide range, including Carrera National Park in Costa Rica (Laurencio and Malone 2009), Pico Bonito National Park in Honduras (McCranie and Solís 2013), and Calakmul Biosphere Reserve in Mexico (Colston et al. 2015).

Research Needed
Further research is required to fully resolve the taxonomic status of the species.