It is native to shallow tropical waters of the western Indo-Pacific, living at depths down to 70 m, and being associated with coral reefs.

The process by which Vietnamese Gold Stripe Sardinella are made available includes being washed, steamed, sun dried, packed and preserved.

[5] The goldstripe sardinella has a relatively slender body, and a below average number of gill rakers, with unique, small perforations on the hind part of their scales along with a dark spot on the dorsal fin.

The distribution of S. gibbosa includes the Indo-West Pacific, East African coast, and a range from Madagascar to Indonesia.

First recorded in 2008 in the Mediterranean Sea off Israel,[6] it is strongly suspected to be present in other locations due to its resemblance to Sardinella maderensis.