The species ranges throughout most of the Indian Ocean, as well as the tropical and subtropical Pacific from Indonesia north to the Taiwan Strait.

Overlapping with this species in the Taiwan Strait and replacing it northwards is the East Asian finless porpoise (N. sunameri).

The Indo-Pacific finless porpoise lives in the coastal waters of Asia, especially around Indonesia, Malaysia, India, and Bangladesh.

The auditory system also appears well-developed, with numerous large nerve fibres specialised for rapid communication between the ears and the brain.

On the other hand, sight is relatively poor, with a reduced lens and a limited number of fibres in the optic nerve and to the muscles moving the eyes.

[6][7] Finless porpoises are opportunistic feeders using various kinds of available food items available in their habitat, including fish, crustaceans, and cephalopods.

They also apparently ingest some plant material when living in estuaries, mangroves, and rivers, including leaves, rice, and eggs deposited on vegetation.

The young are born in spring, summer, or winter, depending on the geographic locality, after a gestation period of ten to eleven months.

[3] It has been claimed that young calves cling to the denticulated area of skin on their mother's back and are carried by her as she swims, but there is no clear evidence of this happening.

[citation needed] The finless porpoise is listed on Appendix II[13] of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS).

It is listed on Appendix II[13] as it has an unfavourable conservation status or would benefit significantly from international co-operation organised by tailored agreements.

Since this species remains in coastal waters, it has a high degree of interaction with humans, which often puts the finless porpoise at risk.