It is endemic to Mexico and found on the Central Mexican Plateau.

[3] In 2016, the enigmatic Bufo intermedius, known only from old museum specimens supposedly collected from Ecuador and long suspected to be related to some Mexican species, was found to be synonym of Incilius occidentalis.

[2][4][5] The decisive piece of evidence were the stomach contents that revealed two beetle species that do not occur in Ecuador.

[4][5] It is a common toad that lives in a wide variety of habitats, including lowland xeric scrubs, deciduous forest, coniferous forests, and oak forests.

Breeding takes place in streams, and desiccation, alteration and pollution of its breeding habitat are the main threats to this species.