Buteo lagopus has a nearly holarctic distribution. Its geographic range includes most of the United States and all of Canada. Rough-legged hawks spend their winter months in all of the United States except for North Carolina and along the southeast coast of the United States, Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas. They are found as far north as Newfoundland and as far west as central Europe and parts of Russia.

Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native ); palearctic (Native )

Other Geographic Terms: holarctic