This species is a cosmopolitan and occurs from the Azores and Europe (Castroviejo et al. 1987, Preston and Croft 1997, Gardenfors 2010, WCSPF 2010) east through the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent to east and southeast Asia (Cook 1970). It occurs in Africa north and south of the Sahara including Madagascar, as well as Australasia and north, central and south America. It is apparently introduced in Mauritius, New Zealand and Hawaii (World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2010). The species has been recorded along the Mekong River in Thailand, Lao PDR, Cambodia and Viet Nam.

In China (Flora of China; eFlora 2011) this species is widespread throughout the country; it has been recorded from a number of provinces (Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jilin, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Xinjiang, Xizang, Yunnan, Zhejiang), and expected to be reported from additional provinces.