It is found in Afghanistan, Egypt, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, the United Arab Emirates, and Uzbekistan.

The variable wheatear is a bird of arid and semi-arid region, and is locally abundant in barren rocky areas, sand dunes with scrub vegetation, cultivation, ravines, outside villages and nomadic encampments.

[4] Common and generally distributed in winter in Pakistan and northwestern India southeast to Delhi, central Madhya Pradesh and northern Maharashtra (Khandesh).

Arrives on breeding grounds in March (Baluchistan) or mid April (Chitral), remains till September.

[3] In winter frequents stony semi-desert, and desert with sparsely scrubbed sand dunes, cultivation, ravines, outskirts of villages and nomadic encampments, cattle corrals, etc.