It is endemic to the Philippines, formerly found throughout the entire country, but due to the illegal wildlife trade, it is now locally extinct in most of its range with the only sizeable population remaining in Palawan and Sulu Archipelago.

It is roughly the size and shape of the Tanimbar corella, but is easily distinguished by the red feathers around the vent.

It appears to be restricted to lowland primary and/or secondary forest predominantly below 50 m, in or adjacent to riverine or coastal areas with mangroves.

Red-vented cockatoos were formerly widely distributed on all larger and many smaller islands of the Philippines, excluding northern and central Luzon.

The species' stronghold is the Palawan Faunal Region, where the Katala Foundation has been running the Philippine Cockatoo Conservation Programme since 1998.

[7] The efforts for conservation of the Katala Foundation are threatened by plans to build a coal-fired power station on Palawan's coast.

It is also threatened by habitat loss; deforestation still continues due to both legal and illegal logging, conversion into farmland, mining, and road and urban development.

In its stronghold on Rasa Island, it is threatened by climate change and extreme weather in which droughts caused up to 60% nest fatality.

An attempt on a resort island in northern Palawan indicated that rescued hand-raised birds can adapt well to natural conditions, including foraging and predator avoidance, but was terminated owing to problems caused by tameness.