Kori Bustards are birds of wide, open grasslands, and lightly wooded savanna. The subspecies struthiunculus is generally found at low elevations ranging anywhere from 700 to 2000 meters. The subspecies kori can be found in arid savanna areas where trees are scattered intermittently. Both subspecies are fond of areas where the grass is short and where there is a good view of the surrounding area. Kori Bustards are omnivorous birds, although they tend to be more carnivorous than other species of bustards.
Insects form a large portion of their diet, especially when they are chicks.
They also eat a variety of small mammals, lizards, snakes, seeds, and berries of plants. They have been observed eating carrion. They are purported to eat the gum from the Acacia tree. Discrepancy exists however, as to whether they are eating the gum itself, or the insects that might be stuck to the gum. Kori Bustards are one of the few species of birds that drink water using a sucking motion rather than scooping it up as most birds do.