Global Range: A. absinthium may be found from Newfoundland to Manitoba, as far north as Hudson's Bay, and south to Nova Scotia, New England, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey (Britton and Brown 1913, Fernald 1950). In the Midwest, it can be found in Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Minnesota (Fernald 1950). In the Great Plains, it is found in North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and the Prairie Provinces of Canada (Britton and Brown 1913, Fernald 1950, Molberg 1976, Wrage and Kinch 1973, Mitich 1975, Schroeder 1979). It is also known to occur in Nebraska and Kansas (McGregor et al. 1977).

Absinth sage is a native of Eurasia, the Middle East, and North Africa (Wrage and Kinch 1973, Mitich 1975). It was introduced to North America in the early part of the 19th century to be cultivated for medicinal and social uses (Mitich 1975), and was first reported outside cultivated gardens in 1841, along roadsides and on waste ground (Torrey and Gray 1841, Mitich 1975).