Idaho Deer · Unit 21

Idaho Unit 21 covers 325,996 acres and lies 29 miles north-west of Salmon. 99% of it is public land, mostly national forest (99%). In 2025, 824 people hunted deer here and took 405, a 49% success rate. Its most applied-for hunt, 1013, put up 5 tags (all residencies) in the 2026 draw for 92 nonresident first-choice applicants, 1 of whom drew.

No points in this draw. Every applicant has the same chance each year.

Tags, 2026
5

1 license · NR capped at 10%

Applicants
92

first choice, NR

Hunter Success
49%

2025, all licenses

Public Land
99%

99% Forest Service

Size
509 mi²

325,996 acres

Salmon 21
49%hunter success 2025 · 824 hunters, 405 deer

Boundaries are drawn for orientation only. The written boundary description in the regulations governs.

Every License in Unit 21

90–100% 50–89% 10–49% 1–9% under 1% fewer than 5 tags: one applicant swings it
1013 1% (small sample)

First-choice nonresident odds, 2026 draw. No points in this draw: every applicant has the same chance.

Draw results: IDFG 2026 Hunt Planner drawing odds, retrieved Aug 31, 2026.

If you draw (2026 nonresident fees): $554.75 ($203 to apply). Open May 1 – Jun 5, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

Harvest

Year Hunters Deer Success
2025 824 405 49%
2024 771 329 43%
2023 643 187 29%
2022 684 194 28%
2021 710 263 37%
2025 by LicenseHuntersDeerSuccess
1013 5 4 80%
1156 1 1 100%

2025 split: firearm 368 (91%) from 733 hunters, 50%, archery 31 (8%) from 81 hunters, 38%, muzzleloader 6 (1%) from 10 hunters, 60%

What Idaho Department of Fish and Game publishes after each season, for everyone who hunted the area: harvest statistics, not draw odds. Idaho's figures are counts from mandatory hunter reports and check stations rather than survey estimates, so they behave differently from the survey states. Source: IDFG 2025 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer; IDFG 2024 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer; IDFG 2023 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer.

The Ground

National Forest 321,370 ac 99%
Private 4,122 ac 1%
Other public 231 ac <1%

Source: U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Idaho State Office 2026 BLM Surface Management Agency.

What the Agency Says About the Area

All of Unit 21.

Source: IDFG 2025 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer.

▸ Sources 9
  1. IDFG 2026 Hunt Planner drawing odds draw results, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  2. IDFG 2026 License, Tag, and Permit Costs fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  3. IDFG 2025 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer harvest, area description, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  4. IDFG 2024 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  5. IDFG 2023 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  6. IDFG 2022 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  7. IDFG 2021 Hunt Planner Harvest Statistics, deer harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  8. IDFG 2025 Controlled hunt area boundaries boundary, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
  9. U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Idaho State Office 2026 BLM Surface Management Agency land ownership, retrieved Aug 31, 2026

About These Numbers

Odds are from the 2026 draw, the latest on file, computed from Idaho Department of Fish and Game's published results. They are what happened in that draw, not a forecast. Under five tags a percentage carries a *, because one applicant either way swings it. A dash means the agency did not publish the number, and a date marked expected is last cycle's schedule rolled forward. How we compute these.

Report an error on this page

Every report is checked against the agency source before we change anything.

We don't take applications: check Idaho Department of Fish and Game's site and apply there.

Prior-draw odds from Idaho Department of Fish and Game's results, not a forecast · Methodology · All Idaho deer hunts