Habenaria quinqueseta has a widespread distribution from southern North America through to Central America and the West Indies, with the southernmost part of its range in northern South America. In North America it is known from the southern United States (
Alabama,
Florida,
Georgia,
Louisiana,
Mississippi,
South Carolina, and
Texas) and Mexico. In Central America it is known from
Costa Rica,
El Salvador,
Guatemala,
Honduras,
Nicaragua, and
Panama. In the West Indies it is known from
the Bahamas,
Cuba, the
Dominican Republic,
Haiti, and
Jamaica. In South America it is known from
Colombia,
French Guiana,
Guyana,
Suriname, and
Venezuela, never reaching as far south as
Brazil. In the southern United States, this species inhabits
flatwoods,
hammocks,
meadows,
swamps and roadside areas at elevations up to . ==References==