This adaptable species has been recorded from a very wide range of habitats. It is commonly found in moist and dry tropical rain forest, including evergreen forest habitats in the form of coastal (including mangrove) and riverine forest, through moist and dry savanna and mosaics of these and similar habitat types. Populations can persist in modified habitats and the species is often recorded in urban areas, such as wooded city parks.

This species is broadly distributed across the lowland rainforest and savanna zones of Africa from Senegal in the west, through to South Africa in the south and Ethiopia in the east (possibly ranging into Djibouti and southern Eritrea). It is also present on the extreme southwest Arabian Peninsula, where it has been recorded from Yemen and Saudi Arabia (Harrison and Bates 1991). Populations of this species occur on several offshore islands including the Gulf of Guinea islands and Zanzibar, Pemba and Mafia (off Tanzania) (Bergmans 1990, Simmons 2005). There is a possibly disjunct population in the Air Mountains of Niger. Distribution at northern and southern extremes of the range is patchy and erratic. It is also sparse or absent in large areas of the Horn of Africa, central East Africa, and elsewhere (Bergmans 1990). This is a migratory species in parts of its range, with populations migrating from the West African forest north into the savanna zone during the major wet season (Thomas 1983). Over a million individuals migrate seasonally to Kasanka National Park in Zambia where they are present between November and January (Sorensen and Halberg 2001, Richter and Cumming 2006). It ranges from sea level to around 2,000 m asl (Ruwenzori Mountains).

This species is present in a few protected areas across its range, usually for relatively short periods of time, with a large roosting colony in Kasanka National Park, Zambia. As this species appears to prefer anthropogenic landscapes, conservation of Eidolon should not be approached in terms of traditional “creation of protected areas.” Eidolon conservation requires a completely different approach and way of thinking to get local communities to accept and even protect their colonies. There is a need to identify and protect important roosting sites, and a better understanding of the migratory patterns of this species would be beneficial to any conservation activities. The highest priority is to limit the harvesting of this species to sustainable levels. This would include an extensive community engagement programme in areas of important roosts and engaging all stakeholders, including government in the importance of this species. Under the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS) Eidolon helvum is a listed species and as such should be afforded protection in signatory countries. A working group of these countries could form a species action plan and work together to improve protection of this species. Some countries with important roosts, such as Zambia are currently not signatories of CMS and work is being carried out to better understand why Zambia is currently not a signatory.