Tropical rainforests grow mainly in three regions: the Malesian botanical subkingdom, which extends from Myanmar (Burma) to Fiji and includes the whole of Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu and parts of Indochina and tropical Australia; tropical South and Central America, especially the Amazon basin; and West and Central Africa (see biogeographic region).

The division left tropical rainforests located in five major regions of the world: tropical America, Africa, Southeast Asia, Madagascar, and New Guinea, with smaller outliers in Australia.

Tropical rainforests occur in every continent except Antarctica, but the vast majority are situated in South America, with Brazil taking the biggest chunk. They are also located in the Islands off of Southeast Asia and lowland regions in Africa.

The majority of tropical rainforests are found in four biogeographic realms: the Afrotropical (mainland Africa, Madagascar, and scattered islands), the Australian (Australia, New Guinea, and the Pacific Islands), the Indomalayan (India, Sri Lanka, mainland Asia, and Southeast Asia), and the Neotropical (South America, Central America, and the Caribbean islands).