It occurs in mountainous grasslands and shrub lands of central Asia, and is one of the 9 Palearctic (Eurasia) species.

[5][8] Gray marmots live in mountain meadows and steppes, where they forage on sage bush in the spring, grasses and flowering plants in summer and fall.

[6][5][9][10] They occur in elevations from 150 to 4,000 m (490 to 13,120 feet), but may prefer mild to moderate well draining slopes with suitable soil for burrowing.

[4][8][9][11] Their distribution extends from the Altai mountains of southwestern Siberia (Tuva, Russia), western Mongolia, northwestern China (Xinjiang), and eastern Kazakhstan, into the Tien Shan mountains of northwestern China, Kyrgyzstan, and southeastern Kazakhstan.

In southeastern Kazakhstan and southwestern Siberia the range enters lower elevation, dry steppes.

[4] In the Altai mountains of western Mongolia, the range overlaps with the Tarbagan marmot (Marmota sibirica).

[3][11] Fossils of the gray marmot are known from Denisova Cave, famous for being the site of the discovery of the first remains of Denisovans.

[5] Gray marmots live in harsh environments with snowfall limiting food for a significant amount of time.

[4][6] Gray marmots use alarm calls to warn family members of predator presence.

[5] Gray marmots have anal and cheek glands used for communication of dominance and possibly defense.

[5][8] They use tail movements as visual cues, and various vocalizations such a growls, high pitched cries, whining and alarm calls.