Hardy from zone 2 to 6, this species can withstand extreme heat and cold and a variety of soil conditions, although it prefers moist, loamy or alluvial soils. It is found along streams and lake shores and adjacent rocky hills and slopes. It is the first species to invade abandoned farmland in the north, preferring full sun, but tolerating some shade. A few pests and diseases are common.
White spruce is the provincial tree of Manitoba.
It grows at the Arctic tree line and is native from Alaska to Newfoundland, south to Montana, Minnesota and New York.