Arizona Deer — Unit 36A
Arizona Unit 36A covers 395,344 acres and lies 17 miles west of Sahuarita and 31 miles south-west of Tucson. 65% of it is public land, mostly state trust land (47%) and wildlife refuge (13%). In 2025, 2,551 people hunted deer here and took 519 — 20% of them killed something. The 2026 draw put up 37 tags here for 27 first-choice applicants, and the last tag went to someone with 2 points.
Your chance of drawing here
Every deer license type on offer in Unit 36A, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.
Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice nonresident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.
Simple view Odds at every point level-
15% Long shot 0% as 2nd choice
-
27% Long shot 3% as 2nd choice
-
<1% Point builder 0% as 2nd choice
-
100% Likely draw 28% as 2nd choice
-
100% Likely draw 26% as 2nd choice
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100% Undersubscribed 18% as 2nd choice
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3% Point builder 2% as 2nd choice
-
53% Real chance 8% as 2nd choice
-
100% Undersubscribed 40% as 2nd choice
| Hunt | Your odds (0 pts) | As 2nd choice | Points needed | Tags / applicants | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1057 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered mule deer | 36A Rifle | 15% Long shot | 0% | 5 +2 since 2025 | 20 / 22 | Oct 30 – Nov 5, 2026 |
| 1058 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered mule deer | 36A Rifle | 27% Long shot | 3% | 3 steady since 2023 | 20 / 5 | Nov 13–19, 2026 |
| 1059 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered mule deer | 36A Rifle | <1% Point builder | 0% | — | 1 / 44 | Dec 11–31, 2026 |
| 1140 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered whitetail deer | 36A Rifle | 100% Likely draw | 28% | 2 steady since 2023 | 35 / 34 | Oct 23–29, 2026 |
| 1141 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered whitetail deer | 36A Rifle | 100% Likely draw | 26% | 2 steady since 2023 | 37 / 27 | Nov 6–12, 2026 |
| 1142 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered whitetail deer | 36A Rifle | 100% Undersubscribed | 18% | 2 steady since 2023 | 35 / 19 undersubscribed | Nov 27 – Dec 6, 2026 |
| 1143 ↗ GENERAL DEER | Antlered whitetail deer | 36A Rifle | 3% Point builder | 2% | 7 +2 since 2023 | 5 / 41 | Dec 11–31, 2026 |
| 1173 ↗ YOUTH-ONLY (GENERAL) DEER | Any antlered deer | 36A Rifle | 53% Real chance | 8% | 3 | 15 / 20 | Nov 20–26, 2026 |
| 1196 ↗ MUZZLELOADER DEER | Antlered whitetail deer | 36A Muzzleloader | 100% Undersubscribed | 40% | 2 | 7 / 5 undersubscribed | Oct 9–15, 2026 |
What these columns mean
- Your odds —
- the share of applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year.
- The badge —
- plain language for that number. Likely draw 75% or better · Real chance 40%+ · Long shot 15%+ · Point builder below that, so you are applying mainly to bank a point · Undersubscribed means fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
- As 2nd choice —
- Arizona lets you name more than one hunt on the application. Miss on your first choice and you go into the pot for whatever tags are left, alongside everyone else's second choices. Points never help a lower choice, so this number is the same whatever you have banked — it is usually worth naming a hunt that goes undersubscribed.
- Points needed —
- the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw, and how that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold.
- Tags / applicants —
- tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them. Under five tags we print counts instead of a percentage, because one applicant either way swings it.
What it costs to apply (2026 nonresident fees)
| License | Up front | Gone if you miss | If you draw |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per application | $175 | $175 | $475 |
Application window: closes Jun 2, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.
The country
Boundaries are drawn for orientation only — the written boundary description in the regulations governs.
Who owns the ground
- State trust land 186,800 ac · 47%
- Private 138,989 ac · 35%
- National Wildlife Refuge 50,605 ac · 13%
- BLM 18,806 ac · 5%
- County or city land 115 ac · 0%
- Tribal 28 ac · 0%
How the hunting has gone
What Arizona Game & Fish Department publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast. Arizona Game & Fish Department publishes these per hunt rather than per unit; the rows below add its own figures together, since a hunter holds one tag for the species in a season. Arizona's figures come from AZGFD's post-season hunter questionnaire - survey estimates carrying a 90% confidence interval and a return count, not a census of animals checked in.
All deer
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,551 | 519 | 20% |
| 2024 | 2,474 | 709 | 29% |
| 2023 | 2,433 | 674 | 28% |
| 2022 | 2,863 | 643 | 22% |
| 2021 | 3,181 | 563 | 18% |
| 2020 | 3,242 | 1,002 | 31% |
| 2019 | 3,038 | 844 | 28% |
| 2018 | 3,234 | 993 | 31% |
White-tailed Deer
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | — | 374 | — |
| 2024 | — | 497 | — |
| 2023 | — | 480 | — |
| 2022 | — | 469 | — |
| 2021 | — | 422 | — |
| 2020 | — | 681 | — |
| 2019 | — | 660 | — |
| 2018 | — | 702 | — |
Mule Deer
| Season | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | — | 143 | — |
| 2024 | — | 199 | — |
| 2023 | — | 194 | — |
| 2022 | — | 176 | — |
| 2021 | — | 139 | — |
| 2020 | — | 321 | — |
| 2019 | — | 184 | — |
| 2018 | — | 291 | — |
What people carried (2025 harvest)
- Firearm 948 · 92% · 1,606 hunters, 59% success
- Archery 88 · 8% · 945 hunters, 9% success
What the agency says about the area
Unit 36A – Beginning at the junction of Sandario Rd. and AZ Hwy 86; southwesterly on AZ Hwy 86 to AZ Hwy 286; southerly on AZ Hwy 286 to the Arivaca-Sasabe Rd.; southeasterly on the Arivaca-Sasabe Rd. to the town of Arivaca; from the town of Arivaca northeasterly on the Arivaca Rd. to I-19; north on I-19 to the southern boundary of the San Xavier Indian Reservation boundary; westerly and northerly along the…
Boundary: AZ Game and Fish Hunt Units (AZGFD ArcGIS feature service, layer 0)
Harvest: 2025 AZ Deer Harvest Summary (draw hunts only)
Harvest: 2025 AZ Over-the-Counter Archery Deer Harvest Summary