Iowa Deer Draw Odds
In the 2026 draw Iowa offered 20 deer hunts to nonresidents, drawn by preference points. At 0 points a nonresident had at least an even chance in 3 hunts open to every hunter.
Open May 1 – Jun 6, 2027 (expected)
$61 kept if you miss, the rest refunded
2026 draw
10,323 nonresident applicants
Point only: $60.50 nonresident · on the draw application · apply by Jun 6, 2027 (expected) → Buying Points in Iowa
How the Iowa Draw Works (30-Second Version)
Preference points.
Tags go to the applicants with the most preference points, one level at a time. If the last level that draws has more applicants than tags remaining, those applicants are chosen at random. Everyone below that level misses and earns a point.
Best Bets at 0 Points
Odds × hunter success × public land, 10 tags or more. Private-land, ranch, landowner and youth hunts left out.
Z3-GUN
Zone 3 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 3 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons)
- Success
- —
- Public
- 3%
- Season
- Dec 5–9
Z8-GUN
Zone 8 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 8 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons)
- Success
- —
- Public
- 3%
- Season
- Dec 5–9
Z9-GUN
Zone 9 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 9 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons)
- Success
- —
- Public
- 3%
- Season
- Dec 5–9
Z1-GUN
Zone 1 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 1 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons)
- Success
- —
- Public
- 2%
- Season
- Dec 5–9
Z10-GUN
Zone 10 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 10 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons)
- Success
- —
- Public
- 2%
- Season
- Dec 5–9
Z2-GUN
Zone 2 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 2 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons)
- Success
- —
- Public
- 1%
- Season
- Dec 5–9
Every Hunt at 0 Points
20 hunt codes drawn in 2026 · 3 at 50% or better · first choice · nonresident
| Hunt | Season | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Z1-BOW Zone 1 · Either-sex archery · Zone 1 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 1 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 1 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 1 | 31 / 75 | — |
| Z1-GUN Zone 1 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 1 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 1 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 1 | Dec 5–9 | 41% | 0 | 59 / 95 | — |
| Z2-BOW Zone 2 · Either-sex archery · Zone 2 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 2 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 2 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 3▲1 | 31 / 92 | — |
| Z2-GUN Zone 2 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 2 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 2 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 2 | Dec 5–9 | 20% | 0 | 59 / 115 | — |
| Z3-BOW Zone 3 · Either-sex archery · Zone 3 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 3 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 3 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 1 | 196 / 345 | — |
| Z3-GUN Zone 3 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 3 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 3 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 3 | Dec 5–9 | 100% | 0 | 364 / 362 | — |
| Z4-BOW Zone 4 · Either-sex archery · Zone 4 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 4 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 4 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 5▲2 | 448 / 872 | — |
| Z4-GUN Zone 4 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 4 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 4 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 4 | Dec 5–9 | 0% | 1 | 832 / 1,272 | — |
| Z5-BOW Zone 5 · Either-sex archery · Zone 5 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 5 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 5 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 5▲1 | 560 / 1,431 | — |
| Z5-GUN Zone 5 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 5 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 5 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 5 | Dec 5–9 | 0% | 1 | 1,040 / 1,703 | — |
| Z6-BOW Zone 6 · Either-sex archery · Zone 6 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 6 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 6 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 5▲1 | 280 / 513 | — |
| Z6-GUN Zone 6 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 6 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 6 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 6 | Dec 5–9 | 0% | 1▲1 | 520 / 786 | — |
| Z7-BOW Zone 7 · Either-sex archery · Zone 7 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 7 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 7 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 3▲1 | 126 / 343 | — |
| Z7-GUN Zone 7 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 7 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 7 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 7 | Dec 5–9 | 13% | 0 | 234 / 409 | — |
| Z8-BOW Zone 8 · Either-sex archery · Zone 8 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 8 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 8 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 1 | 84 / 131 | — |
| Z8-GUN Zone 8 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 8 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 8 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 8 | Dec 5–9 | 76% | 0 | 156 / 195 | — |
| Z9-BOW Zone 9 · Either-sex archery · Zone 9 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 9 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 9 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 3▲1 | 308 / 676 | — |
| Z9-GUN Zone 9 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 9 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 9 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 9 | Dec 5–9 | 70% | 0 | 572 / 735 | — |
| Z10-BOW Zone 10 · Either-sex archery · Zone 10 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | Either-sex archery · Zone 10 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season | 10 | Oct 1–Dec 4 | 0% | 1 | 35 / 65 | — |
| Z10-GUN Zone 10 · Either-sex rifle · Zone 10 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | Either-sex rifle · Zone 10 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, gun pool (regular gun 1 & 2, late muzzleloader, disabled seasons) | 10 | Dec 5–9 | 31% | 0 | 65 / 108 | — |
Showing all 20 · sorted by zone
What These Columns Mean
- Odds at your points —
- the share of first-choice applicants at your point level who drew this tag in the 2026 draw. Not a forecast: quotas and demand move every year. A badge marked * had under five tags, so one applicant either way swings it.
- Pts needed —
- the lowest point total that still got a tag in the 2026 draw; the ▲ or ▼ is how far that cut has moved since the earliest draw we hold. A 0 marks a hunt that went Undersubscribed: fewer first-choice applicants than tags, so everyone who applied drew.
- Tags / apps —
- tags on offer and first-choice applicants for them, as the agency published them.
- Success —
- the share of hunters in the zone who killed an animal, from the latest harvest report on file. It is the whole zone's figure, not the hunt's.
All 10 Zones
Each zone has its own page: where it is on the map, how much of it is public land, what the hunters who went there killed last season, and every license type you can apply for inside it.
Report an error on this page
About These Numbers
Every percentage here is the chance an applicant with that many points had in the draw year shown, computed from the agency's published results; quotas, applicant numbers and point levels change every year. A dash means the agency did not publish the number. Under five tags the percentage is flagged: one applicant either way swings it. Check the agency's site and apply there; we don't take applications. How we compute these.