The species is classified as Endangered by the IUCN based on its restricted range and extremely low population numbers. A 2015 assessment estimated a total number of 210-268 individuals (of which roughly 140-180 would be adults), and the population is believed to have shrunk by 10-20% per decade in the recent past. Although the black-breasted puffleg has recently been rediscovered in small populations outside its main range on the Pichincha volcano, its total area of occurrence is estimated as no larger than 80 km2. Of the habitat in its original range, 93-97% are considered to have been degraded or destroyed by agricultural expansion, logging and cattle grazing, and these practices remain the main threats to the species, together with natural and human-induced fires.