According to the International Ornithological Committee (IOC) the sooty-headed wren is monotypic.

The nominate adults' crown, shoulders, and back are dull blackish and the rump bright chestnut.

[5] The nominate sooty-headed wren is found in Colombia, in the Pacific lowlands from southern Chocó Department to Nariño Department and east from there into the central Magdalena Valley and some isolated mountain ranges.

P. s. xerampelinus is found on the Pacific slope of far southern Panama's Darién Province.

Its nest is a ball made of coarse material and leaves with a side entrance.