[2] Especially when dry, these hair-points give the plant a downy appearance, which is referenced in several of the common names for the species.

[5] Other species that may be confused with it include R. canescens and its close relatives,[5] R. heterostichum and Hedwigia stellata.

[4][6] Racomitrium lanuginosum grows from sea level to the alpine zone, particularly among boulder scree and on exposed rock surfaces.

[6] Within North America, R. lanuginosum is found widely across northern Canada, and extends further south both in the east (to Maine), and in the west (to California and the Rocky Mountains).

[2] As well as occurring widely across Arctic Asia, R. lanuginosum is also found in some temperate and tropical mountains on Borneo, Java, Sumatra and New Guinea.

[2] In Australia, R. lanuginosum is restricted to Tasmania and the highest ground of the Great Dividing Range on the border of New South Wales and Victoria.