Across most of the Big Sky State, antelope numbers are stable or increasing, so the 2026 season should be a great year to have a Montana antelope tag in your pocket. For the third consecutive winter, the antelope did not have much to contend with. To date, Montana’s winter has been non-existent and is climbing the ranks of the mildest on record in nearly a century. The result should be zero winterkill mortality and plenty of twin fawns hitting the ground in June.

If you are an archery antelope hunter, the 900-20 archery antelope permit is one of the best opportunity hunts in the West. In 2025, non-resident draw odds were 31% with 1 point, 58% with 2 points, 82% with 3 points, and 91% with 4 points. Remember, there is no reason to go into the draw with no points, as Montana fronts a point purchase at the time of your application ahead of the draw. One of the best things about this hunt is that archery hunters who draw the 900-20 tag can hunt every unit in the state in regions 4 through 7. New for 2026, Region 3 has been split off the 900-20 permit. A new 399-20 archery-only permit was created, and with it, you may hunt any of Region 3’s units aside from 313. The reason for the change was a disproportionately high archery success rate against an already-declining population that was forcing any-weapon permit cuts in some of the region’s units. This change will allow Montana FWP to adjust archery-only quotas in Region 3 as population fluctuations dictate.

The 900-20 & 399-20 archery-only permit season runs August 15 through November 8, although you will be hunting amongst the rifle hunters beginning October 10. All of the rifle season hunts run October 10 to November 8. Hunters who draw a rifle antelope tag can also hunt during the regular archery antelope season within their unit beginning September 5 if they buy the $10 bow-and-arrow license.

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