By this method of rapid locomotion, gibbons may cover 3 meters in a single swing. When traveling on a large limb or on the ground, they usually walk upright with the arms held high for balance. Gibbons can leap from branch to branch for a distance of 9 meters or more. These characteristics were factors in the speciation and largely allopatric distribution of gibbons. Most inhabit lowlands and hills, though H. syndactylus is sometimes found in submontane forests at altitudes of up to 1,800 meters.
All species are primarily diurnal and almost exclusively arboreal.
H. syndactylus is usually found at a height of 25-30 meters in the trees. It is active for about 10.5 hours a day, during which it alternates periods of feeding and rest. Its average daily movement is nearly 1 km, being more during the dry season and less in the wet season. H. lar generally is seen higher in the trees than the siamang and moves faster and farther during the day. The other species are mostly frugivorous but also eat leaves, other vegetable matter, a variety of insects, and perhaps eggs and small vertebrates.