It breeds in the Russian Far East, Manchuria and far northeastern Korea, where its natural habitats are temperate shrubland and grassland.

[2] The species is threatened by habitat loss, caused by overgrazing and changes in agriculture.

[4] The bird's English name honours the Polish collector Michał Jankowski, who collected a specimen on 9 March 1886 on his estate in Sidemi in the Primorsky Krai.

[5] Jankowski's bunting is given the highest level of protection under Chinese law, being added to the list of species named under the Wildlife Protection Law in 2021.

[6] This article about a bird of the family Emberizidae is a stub.