Iowa Deer Z5-BOW — Zone 5
Zone 5 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season · Zone 5
- What you may take
- Zone 5 General any-deer + mandatory antlerless combo, bow season
- Weapon
- Archery
- Archery gear only — no rifle season on this license.
- Seasons (2026)
- Oct 1 – Dec 4, 2026 · Dec 21 – Jan 10, 2027
- Nonresident tags (2026)
- 560
- for 1,431 first-choice applicants
Showing nonresident results. Switch to resident
Odds by point level — 2026 draw
Prior-draw probability for a first-choice nonresident applicant. 560 tags, 1,431 first-choice applicants, drew out at 5 points. Source: 2026 Nonresident Deer Draw · p. 1.
| Points | Your chance | Applicants | Drawn |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0% | — | 0 |
| 1 | 0% | — | 0 |
| 2 | 0% | — | 0 |
| 3 | 0% | — | 0 |
| 4 | 0% | — | 0 |
| 5 | 4% | — | 40 |
| 6–10 | 100% same chance at every one of these levels | — | 427 |
Below the level that drew out. A dash means Iowa Department of Natural Resources did not publish a count for that level — it prints exact counts around the cut and folds the rest into a band. Iowa Department of Natural Resources prints tags issued per point level, not applicants: the 0-point applicant count is derived (total applications minus the winners above it), and the agency's own printed percentage divides by all applications. How we compute these.
What it costs (2026 nonresident fees)
At the 2026 odds, expected cost per hunt-year ranges from $644 (enough points to draw) to $644 (lowest published odds).
Not applying this year? A point-only purchase costs $60.50 (May 2 – Jun 7, expected) and keeps you moving toward the 5-point cut.
Next application window: opens May 2, closes Jun 7, 2027 (expected). Last cycle's schedule rolled forward — confirm when the agency publishes.
Point creep & years to draw
Drew out at 4 → 5 → 5 → 5 → 5 points (2022–2026): +0.0 points/yr (range +0.0 to +1.0). Projecting that pace forward:
| Your points now | Years until a sure thing |
|---|---|
| 0 | 5 yrs (5–∞) |
| 1 | 4 yrs (4–∞) |
| 2 | 3 yrs (3–∞) |
| 3 | 2 yrs (2–∞) |
| 4 | 1 yr (1–∞) |
| 5 | now |
A projection of the last five draws' median creep (capped at 2 points/yr), not a forecast. Random-pass odds still apply every year you're below the cut.
Seasons (2026)
How this tag has hunted
Across every license type in Zone 5, Iowa Department of Natural Resources counted 7,207 deer taken in 2024. Full Zone 5 profile: maps, public land, five years of harvest →
Post-season survey, not draw statistics. Source: Iowa DNR White-tailed Deer Program Report (2024-2025 season)
Year by year
The standard draw for nonresidents, one row per year.
| Year | Tags | Applicants | Applicants per tag | Points needed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 560 | 1,431 | 2.6 | 5 | 2026 Nonresident Deer Draw · p. 1 |
| 2025 | 560 | 1,281 | 2.3 | 5 | Nonresident Deer Draw statistics · p. 1 |
| 2024 | 560 | 1,199 | 2.1 | 5 | Nonresident Deer Draw statistics · p. 1 |
| 2023 | 560 | 1,419 | 2.5 | 5 | Nonresident Deer Draw statistics · p. 1 |
| 2022 | 560 | 1,429 | 2.6 | 4 | Nonresident Deer Draw statistics · p. 1 |
| 2021 | 560 | 1,497 | 2.7 | 4 | Nonresident Deer Draw statistics · p. 1 |
Other licenses valid in Zone 5
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How to read these numbers
Every percentage on this page is a prior-draw probability: the chance an applicant with that many points would have drawn in the draw year shown, computed from the agency's published results. It is not a forecast — quotas, applicant numbers, and point creep change every year. Every figure links to the agency document it came from. Where a state does not publish a number, we show a dash, never a zero. Hunts with fewer than five tags show counts instead of percentages. Fees show the fee year used. Read the methodology for the engine details.
Not an application service
This page is informational only. Draw rules, quotas, fees, and deadlines are set by the state agency and change by commission action — confirm everything on the agency's own site before you apply, and apply through the agency, not here. We disclaim all liability for reliance on this page.