Although A. gryllus is a member of the tree frog family, it lives mostly on the ground or in freshwater areas with sunlight. Examples of prime habitat include shallow ponds with vegetation, meadows, creeks, marshes and coastal plain bogs. The southern cricket frog can also be found in roadside pools and ditches. In these areas, they can become quite abundant. Its main choices of habitation changes, however, when the southern cricket frog's range overlaps with that of Acris crepitans. When this occurs, A. gryllus will typically move to areas which have been drained of water. The population of A. gryllus becomes less active and enters a period of dormancy near the middle of December, and reanimates in mid-February.

Range elevation: 500 to 1000 m.

Habitat Regions: temperate ; terrestrial ; freshwater

Terrestrial Biomes: forest

Aquatic Biomes: lakes and ponds; rivers and streams; temporary pools

Wetlands: marsh ; swamp ; bog

Other Habitat Features: agricultural