The species occurs in a variety of habitats encompassing those with moderate amounts of water to deserts, including open grassland, woodland and farmland. It appears only after heavy rains. It has been found in backyards in suburban Adelaide 700 m or so from breeding sites (J.D. Roberts pers. comm. 2016). It is commonly found under objects (rocks, logs). It breeds in autumn or winter and males call whilst floating in static water. They lay approximately 1,000 eggs in a chain entwined with submerged vegetation. The tadpoles take five to seven months to complete their development.

This Australian endemic species occurs in southeastern South Australia eastwards into western Victoria, extending in to far southwestern New South Wales. It is sympatric with Neobatrachus sudelli in the southeast of South Australia and western Victoria. N. sudelli was widely misidentified as N. pictus before the 1980s (J.D. Roberts pers. comm. 2016). It occurs from 50–400 m asl. The extent of occurrence of the species is approximately 573,966 km².

Conservation Actions In-Place
The range of the species includes several protected areas.