In this issue, we will only be covering Montana’s deer and elk hunts. As a non-resident, if you draw a general combination license, you can hunt all the general units in the state. Montana residents can purchase general licenses over the counter.
Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (FWP) prints several different sets of regulations covering all the different species, and each has its own release date. Application periods for the different species are staggered. We will cover sheep, moose, mountain goat, bison, and antelope hunts in our April issue.
Non-resident general and limited deer and elk applications must be submitted online by 11:45 p.m. MDT on April 1. Montana’s regulations are available for download online at https://fwp.mt.gov/hunt/regulations, or you can request a physical copy by calling 406-444-2535.
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| Montana Elk | Montana Mule Deer | Montana Mountain Goat |
| Montana Bighorn Sheep | Montana Bison | Montana Moose |
| Montana Pronghorn Antelope | Available Montana Hunts (HF Adventures) | Montana Wolf | Montana Lion | Montana Bear |
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Montana has a complicated application process for non-residents. If you’re a non-resident, you’ll need to apply for one of the big game, elk, or deer combination licenses in the general draw in order to apply for special, limited-entry deer or elk permits. Both applications are due by April 1 at 11:45 p.m. MST. Montana only accepts online applications for its big game draws. You may apply online at https://fwp.mt.gov/buyandapply.
Party applications are available for elk and deer and have a maximum party size of five. Preference points will be averaged to a decimal, while bonus points will be averaged and rounded to the nearest whole number. All big game hunting applications are final after submission. You may not withdraw or amend any of your big game hunting applications.
Applicants wishing to apply for bonus points only for any species may do so from July 1 through September 30. Applicants wishing to apply for a preference point only may do so from July 1 through December 31. When applying for bonus or preference points only, applicants may only apply for one preference or bonus point per species per year.
If you apply for a combo license and limited-entry hunts, the corresponding preference or bonus point may only be purchased at the time of application. You will be locked out of the upcoming points-only period and will be ineligible to purchase a point for anything previously applied for in the general-combination and special drawings that year.
Everyone’s first choice is awarded before anyone’s second choice is considered. For deer and elk, draw results will be available mid-April. There is no waiting period for applying again if you have previously drawn an elk or a deer permit.
Elk and deer non-resident applicants are allocated up to ten percent of the permit quota, though that is not guaranteed. If a non-resident applies for a deer or elk permit area that has a quota under ten, their application will not be considered for the drawing.
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Bonus points will be issued for the special deer and elk drawings. The maximum number of bonus points someone can have going into the 2026 draw for deer and elk is 24 points. A bonus point purchased at the time of application will be added to your existing point total and used in the draw. Bonus points are squared in the drawing. For example, if you have 3 points, that gives you nine chances. You will also receive an additional chance for the current year, giving you a total of ten chances in the drawing. Accumulated bonus points will only be used if you draw your first choice. Party applications will have their bonus points averaged and rounded to the nearest whole number. Bonus points are not used or lost in second and third choice drawings.
Preference points are issued for the resident general-combination drawings. While seventy-five percent of general combination licenses will be issued to non-resident applicants with the most preference points, the other twenty-five percent will be issued to applicants who were unsuccessful in the preference point draw and have zero points. Montana does this to give hunters with no points a chance at drawing a combination license. Participation in the preference point system is voluntary. Only purchase a preference point for the general license drawing if you intend to apply in the next year’s draw. Otherwise, if you don’t apply the following year, your preference points will be purged.
There is a $100 outfitter preference point available to hunters applying with an outfitter. The hunter can buy both the normal preference point and the outfitter preference point going into the draw, giving them two preference points. However, if you buy an outfitter preference point, you are required to hunt with the outfitter you applied with for the entirety of your hunt.
Applicants will need a Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, or debit card to apply. When applying, license fees must be paid for at the time of application.
The Montana bonus and preference point systems are voluntary. Or non-residents, the bonus point costs $20 per species. A preference point for the general combination drawing costs $100 for non-residents. When applying online, you will be charged a convenience fee of $0.20, and an additional three percent of the total purchase will be added to your application fees.
Anyone born after January 1, 1985, must have taken a hunter education course to purchase a hunting license in Montana. In order to purchase an archery license, you must provide either a certificate showing completion of a bowhunter education course or any prior year’s bowhunting permit from any other state. Hunters and those accompanying a hunter as an outfitter or guide must wear a minimum of 400 square inches of visible hunter orange material above the waist. This rule does not apply during the archery-only season.
An eleven-year-old who will be twelve years old by January 16, 2027, may purchase a hunting license and apply for any drawing but cannot hunt until after August 15, 2026.
Montana gives non-residents up to ten percent of the big game tag quota. We’ve listed the prior year’s first choice draw odds based on if that applicant had 1, 5, 10, or 15 points going into the draw. This will give applicants at various point levels a better idea of their draw odds for a given hunt, and it also gives applicants a timeframe for when they can anticipate having better draw odds.
For detailed draw odds where you can enter in your points to see exactly what your odds were last year, go to research.huntinfool.com.
Under the Apprentice Hunter program, youth ages ten through seventeen can get out in the field and hunt prior to having taken a hunter education course. An apprentice hunter must still purchase all applicable licenses, and they must also be accompanied by a mentor twenty-one or older who has completed the Apprentice Hunter Mentor Form available online or at regional Montana FWP offices. Additionally, the apprentice must obtain a $5 Apprentice Hunter Certification from a regional Montana FWP office or online at https://fwp.mt.gov/. Apprentice hunters cannot apply for limited-entry draws, and they can only obtain an Apprentice Hunter Certification for two license years before they will be required to complete a hunter education course. Contact the licensing department directly with any questions.
In many units, youth ages twelve to fifteen may harvest a cow elk with their elk license without having to draw a cow elk permit. Legally licensed youth hunters who are ten to fifteen years of age may also hunt deer during the statewide two-day, youth-only deer season, which runs October 15 through 16.
For archery, your bow must be handheld and at least 28” in length to be considered legal. Arrows must be at least 20” in length and have a total weight greater than 300 grains. Broadheads must weigh 70 grains or more and have two cutting edges. Expandable broadheads are also legal so long as they expand to at least 7/8”.
The following muzzleloader restrictions apply only to weapon restriction areas: they must not be capable of being loaded from the breech of the barrel; may not be loaded with any pre-prepared paper or metallic cartridges; must be charged with black powder, pyrodex, or an equivalent; must be ignited by a percussion, flintlock, matchlock, or wheelock mechanism; must be a minimum of .45 caliber; may have no more than two barrels; and must only use plain lead projectiles. Sabots, or other similar power- and range-enhancing manufactured loads that enclose the projectile from the rifling or bore of the firearm, are prohibited.
One Super Tag will be drawn for each species and can be used in any hunting district. Revenue from Super Tag sales is used to enhance hunting access and boost Montana FWP enforcement efforts. Unlimited Super Tag chances may be purchased for $5 each at https://fwp.mt.gov/buyandapply, though you must have a current conservation license to do so. Super Tag chances are available for bighorn sheep, moose, mountain goat, bison, elk, deer, antelope, and mountain lion. The number of Super Tag chances purchased in 2025 for each species are as follows: 53,568 bighorn sheep, 31,221 moose, 15,348 mountain goat, 13,726 bison, 41,214 elk, 17,705 deer, 11,195 antelope, and 3,685 mountain lion.
Montana offers hunters an opportunity to hunt ewe bighorn sheep and antlerless moose. The tags for these hunts are expensive at $1,250 each, but if you are looking for a chance to put some sheep or moose meat in the freezer, applying for these hunts may be worth considering. Make sure you do not accidentally apply for one of these units if you are looking to draw a ram or bull tag. You will lose your points and be stuck with the tag.
For the first time in decades no non-residents will be drawn for a ewe tag in unit 680 of the Missouri Breaks. Ewe permits here in 2021 down to just 2 in 2026. Those two permits will only be available for residents to apply for this year. For 2026, there are only two ewe sheep hunts and four antlerless moose hunts available for non-residents. In 2025, thirty-seven non-resident applied for a ewe tag with their first choice, and one was awarded a tag. Only 2 antlerless moose tags were drawn out of the eighty-seven non-residents who applied. The 2026 non-resident ewe hunts and most of last year, so use the table to see which hunts are available this year. If you have any questions about these hunts, give us a call.
Applicants who are successful in drawing a general license will be placed in the special drawing if they applied for it. For big game combination or elk combination licenses, you will be able to choose from the following options if unsuccessful in the special drawing: keep your general license to use during general seasons; receive an eighty percent refund; or, if you drew a big game combination license and were unsuccessful in drawing a special elk permit, you may elect to receive a $420.80 refund for the elk license and be issued a deer combination license to use during general deer seasons.
If you successfully draw a deer combination license but are unsuccessful in the special drawing, you can return your license for an eighty percent refund by August 1 or a fifty percent refund before the start of the general hunting season. All refunds will be mailed to unsuccessful applicants in the form of a check.
Montana does not have mandatory harvest reporting requirements for deer and elk taken using paper licenses.
Montana allows hunters the option to use electronic tags. The Montana MyFWP app provides a digital wallet to store and display licenses and digital carcass tags, known as E-Tags, that can validate your harvest in the field. When you validate your E-Tag, it automatically reports your harvest to Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks.
Montana has a good hunt planner that can be found at https://fwp.mt.gov/gis/maps/huntplanner/?species=elk. Hunters can also access the Harvest Reports page at https://fwp.mt.gov/hunt/harvest. Management areas enrolled for that year and explaining how to gain access to them. Call 406-444-2612 for more information.
In 1985, Montana started a Block Management program, which is a cooperative program between private landowners and Montana FWP. Block Management helps landowners manage hunting activities and provides the public with free hunting access to private land and, sometimes, to adjacent or isolated public lands. Currently, hunters can hunt 6.8 million acres of private land for free. Funding for the program comes from the sale of various licenses. A regional Hunting Access Guide is published annually by August 15, listing the Block Management areas enrolled for that year and explaining how to gain access to them. Call 406-444-2612 for more information.
During the 2025/2026 season, 247 wolves were harvested. On average, almost 300 wolves are harvested per hunting season. Over half of those wolves are typically harvested by hunters while the rest are taken by trappers. The wolf trapping and hunting season ended on March 15, 2026. We encourage hunters to have a wolf tag in their pocket if they are hunting in the western half of Montana.
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