The habitat of this species includes oceanic waters from the outer continental shelf to deep ocean basins across the cool, temperate North Pacific Ocean. Northern Right Whale Dolphins are sometimes seen near shore, especially where deep water approaches the coast (such as underwater canyons), and apparently prefer "coastal-type" waters in the California Current system (Jefferson et al. 1994). Off the coast of California, the distribution was documented to vary seasonally, shifting south during the summer months in response to changes in sea surface temperature (Forney and Barlow 1998). Ferrero (1998) observed in the central North Pacific that sea surface temperature was the most influential habitat parameter, with Northern Right Whale Dolphins occupying warmer waters than either Dall’s Porpoise (Phocoenoides dalli) or the Pacific White-sided Dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens).

Groups of Northern Right Whale Dolphins frequently mix with other marine mammals, especially Pacific White-sided Dolphins (with which they share a nearly identical range) and Risso’s Dolphins (Grampus griseus) (Baird and Stacey 1991, Lipsky and Brownell 2018).

Although squid and lanternfish are the major prey items for Northern Right Whale Dolphins off southern California, a wide variety of other species are taken throughout their range (Leatherwood and Walker 1979, Jefferson et al. 1994). These include various species of cephalopods, hakes, and sauries (Lipsky and Brownell 2018).

The Northern Right Whale Dolphin is found in deep temperate and subarctic waters of the North Pacific Ocean, between about 30°N and 50°N (Jefferson et al. 2015). The range extends from northern Japan and the Kuril Islands of Russia in the west, to Canada, the U.S.A., and northern Mexico in the east (Lipsky and Brownell 2018). The species occurs primarily in offshore waters although there are also coastal populations along the U.S. west coast.

The Northern Right Whale Dolphin is listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

The most significant conservation measure for this species was the United Nations moratorium on high-seas driftnet fishing that was agreed in 1991 and took effect at the end of 1992. In the eastern North Pacific, the U.S drift gillnet fishery in California has been required since 1996 to use acoustic warning devices (pingers) to reduce cetacean bycatch, although low levels of bycatch of Northern Right Whale Dolphins have continued (Carretta and Enriquez 2012).