This is Montana's published 2026-27 season, the whole state at once. A pin reads its hunting district off the map and cuts this to the seasons, arms and limits that apply there.

Montana deer seasons

2026-27

1 antlered deer per licence year. A General Deer License is valid for one deer, and what class of deer depends on the hunting district and often on the date inside the season. A deer permit — drawn on 1 April — restricts its holder to taking an antlered buck mule deer only in the district or portion of district the permit names, and they may not take an antlered buck mule deer anywhere else in Montana even where the general season is open to it. Deer B licences are antlerless only, drawn by 1 June or bought over the counter from 15 June, and valid in specific districts. Non-residents are limited by law to, but not guaranteed, 10 per cent of a licence or permit quota. Regulations, printed pp. 19-21.

Archery Only
Archery equipment, or a crossbow where the district allows onePrinted in 2 columns — check which covers your hunting district.
Six weeks in September and October — ten days in the backcountry districts.
The general calendar
Sep 5 – Oct 18Either sex
One deer on the General Deer License; antlerless deer on a Deer B licence.
Backcountry — HDs 150, 280 and 316
Sep 5–14Either sex
One deer on the General Deer License; antlerless deer on a Deer B licence.
- "Deer & Elk archery: Sep. 5–Oct. 18." Backcountry HDs 150, 280 and 316: "archery Sep. 5–Sept. 14", and "HD 316 does not have an Archery Only Season". Regulations, printed p. 11.
- A Bow and Arrow Licence is required during the Archery Only Season for any species, and to hunt with archery equipment in an archery-equipment-only area or district. Regulations, printed p. 12.
- To buy one you must show a National Bowhunter Education Foundation certificate, or any prior year's bowhunting stamp, tag, permit or licence from any state or province.
- "A licensed bowhunter pursuing deer, elk, and/or antelope during the Archery Only Season or in an archery only hunting district is not required to meet the hunter orange requirement, even if there is a concurrent firearm season in that hunting district or portion of district." Regulations, printed p. 26.
- The class of deer open — antlered buck mule deer, either-sex white-tailed deer, antlered buck white-tailed deer — is set district by district in the tables from printed p. 48 on.
Youth Two-day Hunt
Any lawful weapon for the districtPrinted in 1 column — check which covers your hunting district.
Two days in the middle of October, deer only, ahead of the general season.
Statewide
Oct 15–16Either sex
One deer on the General Deer License.
- "youth, two-day hunt; deer only: Oct. 15–Oct. 16." Deer only — elk and antelope are not open. Regulations, printed p. 11.
- 400 square inches of hunter orange above the waist, and the adult accompanying as an outfitter or guide wears it too.
General Season
Rifle, handgun, shotgun with 0, 00 or slugs, muzzleloader, archery equipment or crossbowPrinted in 2 columns — check which covers your hunting district.
Five weeks from late October — two and a half months in the backcountry.
The general calendar
Oct 24 – Nov 29Either sex
One deer on the General Deer License; antlerless deer on a Deer B licence.
Backcountry — HDs 150, 280 and 316
Sep 15 – Nov 29Either sex
One deer on the General Deer License; antlerless deer on a Deer B licence.
- "Deer & Elk general: Oct. 24–Nov. 29." Backcountry HDs 150, 280 and 316: "general Sep. 15–Nov. 29". Regulations, printed p. 11.
- "These dates represent the 'general' season dates. Check the individual hunting district regulations for the most accurate season dates and regulations." FWP's own warning, printed under the table.
- Inside the general season a district often opens different classes on different days — HD 100 runs either-sex white-tailed deer 24 to 30 October and antlered buck white-tailed deer 31 October to 29 November, for instance. The app carries the span, not the classes.
- Shoulder seasons run from 15 August to 15 February in some districts, before and after the archery and general seasons. They are set district by district and are not carried here.
- There is no rifle or handgun calibre limitation and no magazine or round capacity restriction for taking game animals in Montana. Illuminated reticles, built-in rangefinding scopes and red dot sights are all lawful.
- 400 square inches of hunter orange above the waist, visible at all times — and a bowhunter out during any part of a general firearm season must wear it too.
Heritage Muzzleloader
A .45 calibre or larger muzzleloading rifle, loose black powder, plain lead projectilesPrinted in 1 column — check which covers your hunting district.
Nine days in December, and the strictest weapon rule of any season here.
Where the district table opens one
Dec 12–20Either sex
One deer on the General Deer License; antlerless deer on a Deer B licence.
- "Dec 12–Dec 20" against the Heritage Muzzleloader column in the district tables. Regulations, printed pp. 48 onward.
- The weapon rule is exact, and it is statute rather than regulation: "Plain lead projectiles and a muzzleloading rifle that is charged with loose black powder, loose pyrodex, or an equivalent loose black powder substitute, and ignited by a flintlock, wheel lock, matchlock, or percussion mechanism using a percussion or musket cap. The muzzleloading rifle must be a minimum of .45 caliber and may not have more than two barrels." MCA 87-1-304(9), printed p. 25.
- Not every district runs one, and where a district does, it may run it for some classes of deer and not others.
- 400 square inches of hunter orange above the waist.

Legal Arms

2026 Deer, Elk, Antelope Hunting Regulations weapon specifications, as the digest prints them.

Archery

Regulations, printed p. 25

Archery equipment
Crossbows, where the district allows them

Heritage muzzleloader

Regulations, printed p. 25 — MCA 87-1-304(9)

A muzzleloading rifle of .45 calibre or larger with no more than two barrels
Loose black powder, loose pyrodex or an equivalent loose substitute
Plain lead projectiles
Flintlock, wheel lock, matchlock or percussion ignition with a percussion or musket cap

Pelletised or pre-formed powder charges
Sabots and jacketed bullets
In-line ignition

General season

Regulations, printed p. 25

Rifle, of any calibre
Handgun, of any calibre
Shotgun with 0, 00 or slugs
Muzzleloader
Archery equipment
Crossbow

Every other method of take

Hunting Hours and Orange

What the state defines as legal light, and what has to be worn in it.

Legal Shooting Hours

Regulations, printed p. 26

"Authorized hunting hours for the taking of game animals begin one-half hour before sunrise and end one-half hour after sunset each day of the hunting season." FWP prints its own sunrise and sunset tables at the back of the regulations; this app computes from the sun at your pin instead.

Fluorescent Orange

Regulations, printed p. 26 — MCA 87-6-414

A minimum of 400 square inches of fluorescent hunter orange material above the waist, visible at all times. Required of any person hunting, and of anyone accompanying a hunter as an outfitter or guide. A licensed bowhunter after deer, elk or antelope during the Archery Only Season, or in an archery-only hunting district, is exempt even where a firearm season runs concurrently in that district — but a bowhunter out during any part of the general firearm season for deer, elk, antelope, moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, bison, black bear or mountain lion must always wear it.

Sundays

Regulations, which print no Sunday exception

Montana sets no Sunday restriction on hunting game animals.

Standing Rules

The parts of the digest that are true every day of the season.

How the licences fit together

Regulations, printed pp. 12-13 and 19-21

A Base Hunting License and a Conservation License are prerequisites for everything.
A General Deer License is valid for one deer, of the class the district's table opens.
A deer permit, drawn by 1 April, restricts its holder to an antlered buck mule deer in the district it names — and bars them from taking one anywhere else in Montana.
A Deer B licence is antlerless only and valid in specific districts; drawn by 1 June or bought over the counter from 15 June.
A Bow and Arrow License is required during the Archery Only Season and in archery-only districts.
Non-residents are limited by state law to, but not guaranteed, 10 per cent of a licence or permit quota.

Firearms

Regulations, printed p. 25

Rifles, handguns, shotguns with 0, 00 or slugs, muzzleloaders, archery equipment and crossbows are all lawful for game animals. Everything else is prohibited.
There is no rifle or handgun calibre limitation, and no magazine or round capacity restriction.
Illuminated reticles, built-in rangefinding scopes and red dot sights are lawful.
The heritage muzzleloader season is the exception: .45 calibre or larger, loose black powder or an equivalent loose substitute, plain lead projectiles, flintlock, wheel lock, matchlock or percussion ignition, and no more than two barrels.

Indian reservations

Regulations, printed p. 27

The Fish and Wildlife Commission has by rule closed all lands within the exterior boundaries of Montana's Indian reservations to the hunting of game animals with state licences, unless provided for in a cooperative agreement between the tribal government and the State of Montana. Hunting there under tribal authority is a separate matter with its own rules.

Hunter harassment

Regulations, printed p. 26 — MCA 87-6-215

It is unlawful to intentionally interfere with the lawful taking of a wild animal.
It is unlawful to disturb a person engaged in the lawful taking of a wild animal with intent to prevent the taking.

Tagging and Reporting

The clock that starts the moment the deer is down.

Regulations, printed p. 26

Every deer must be reported as the district and licence require.

Retain the antlers or horns until the carcass is processed where a district limits harvest by antler point or horn size
Report an unlawfully taken animal to an FWP warden or 1-800-847-6668 immediately, field dress it, and do not transport it until instructed

Chronic Wasting Disease

Background, and the rules that apply if you carry a carcass out of a management area.

Regulations, printed p. 2

Montana runs CWD surveillance across the state and asks hunters to submit samples. The current detections, priority areas and carcass transport rules are published online and change during the season.

The World Health Organization and the CDC recommend not eating meat from an animal known to be infected.
Current sampling locations, priority areas and transport restrictions are at fwp.mt.gov/cwd and are not carried here.

Where This App Is Coarser Than the Digest

Said plainly, because an absence is easy to read as a permission.

The app carries Montana's season spans; the hunting district tables carry the classes. Whether a district's general season is open on antlered buck mule deer, either-sex white-tailed deer or antlered buck white-tailed deer — and on which days inside the season — is in the tables from printed p. 48 on, and it is what actually decides what you may shoot.
FWP prints its own warning above the date summary: "These dates represent the 'general' season dates. Check the individual hunting district regulations for the most accurate season dates and regulations."
Shoulder seasons run from 15 August to 15 February in some districts, before and after the archery and general seasons. They are set district by district and none of them are carried here.
HD 316 has no archery-only season, even though the other two backcountry districts do. The app shows the backcountry archery dates for all three.
Not every district runs a heritage muzzleloader season, and where one runs it may cover only some classes of deer. The app shows the December span wherever a district is on the general calendar.
A deer permit bars its holder from taking an antlered buck mule deer anywhere in Montana except the district the permit names — even where the general season is open to mule deer bucks. The app cannot know which permit you hold.
Montana's Indian reservations are closed to hunting game animals with a state licence unless a cooperative agreement provides otherwise. They are carried as units with a critical flag rather than left blank.
Montana's peak breeding date is an estimate. FWP publishes none; the rut meter uses 20 November.
Montana Cadastral publishes parcels but not as a service this app can query, so there are no property lines on the map here.

Useful Numbers

The agency, when the app cannot answer it.

Montana FWP: 406-444-2950
Licences and applications: ols.fwp.mt.gov
Turn In Poachers: 1-800-847-6668
CWD: fwp.mt.gov/cwd

Transcribed from the published 2026-27 Montana digest. Where this app and the digest disagree, the digest is the law. Read the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks digest.