These blueberries are found in tropical latitudes but they grow at high elevations where it is relatively cool and humid. Many tropical blueberries occur in cloud forests where it is wet and misty most of the day.

Tropical blueberries are often epiphytic (i.e., they grow on another plant, using it for support, but not as a parasite). Many species are also lianas, large woody climbing vines that grow in the forest canopy. The flowers of many tropical blueberries are long and tubular and are likely pollinated by nectar feeding birds. Most of the diversity of tropical blueberries is found on the island of New Guinea and other islands in the western Pacific Ocean.

Recent research using DNA sequence data indicates that the tropical blueberries are not all closely related to each other. The blueberries found in Hawaii are most closely related to the boreal and temperate species in Japan and northwest North America. Tropical blueberries that grow in South America are most likely related to North American temperate blueberries.