[2][4] The plant is native to: North America across Canada, the eastern and central United States, the Great Plains, and in Alaska; the Caribbean on Cuba, Hispaniola, and Jamaica; and South America in the southern bioregion (Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay), the western bioregion (Bolivia, Peru), and Brazil.

[2][5][6][7] The distribution of common ragweed in Europe is expected to expand northwards in the future due to climate change.

[4] This species is host to the following insect induced galls: external link to gallformers Common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia, is a widespread invasive species, and can become a noxious weed, that has naturalized in Europe; temperate Asia and the Indian subcontinent; temperate northern and southern Africa and Macaronesia; Oceania in Australia, New Zealand, and Hawaii; and Southwestern North America in California and the Southwestern United States.

[17] In invasive European populations, the study found selection signatures in defense genes and lower prevalence of disease-inducing plant pathogens.

[19] As of 2014[update] the ragweed leaf beetle, Ophraella communa, has been found south of the Alps in southern Switzerland and northern Italy.

SMARTER is a European interdisciplinary network of experts involved in the control of ragweed, health care professionals, aerobiologists, ecologists, economists, and atmospheric and agricultural modellers.

[22] Ambrosia artemisiifolia has been a traditional medicinal plant for Native American tribes, including the Cherokee, Lakota, Iroquois, Dakota, and Delaware.