Montana Elk 590-15
Elk Permit 590-15 in Hunting District 590, rifle only. 10% public land, mostly State trust land.
No longer drawn. The last draw was 2012.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks held its 2026 elk draw without 590-15. The odds, costs and history below are that record, not an offer.
Your odds at 0 points · 2012 draw
45 tags for 108 first-choice applicants
298 first-choice applicants for 450 tags (all residencies) in 2012, but only 42 of the 108 first-choice applicants drew (nonresidents are capped at 10%).
Years to draw on points: —
- NR Tags
- 45
- Applicants
- 108
- Success
- —
First-choice nonresidents, standard draw; nonresidents capped at 10%.
Points Needed to Draw
Undersubscribed every year on file: 64–121 first-choice applicants for 38–510 tags, 2008–2012.
Bonus points (squared) — no cut to track: each point adds entries to the draw rather than a place in line.
What It Costs · 2026 NR Fees
The $5 application fee per species (deer, elk, antelope and mountain lion drawings) is not refunded. The $50 base hunting license (annual, assessed with first hunting license or application) is not refunded. The $10 conservation license (prerequisite for all licenses) is not refunded. The $7.50 Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Pass (16 and older) is not refunded. The $1,112 general Elk Combination license (elk tag + fishing + upland bird); alternative to the Big Game Combination is refunded if you miss. A bonus point bought with an application (per species; required for accumulated points to count) is $20. The $4 special elk permit (statutory fee, MCA 87-2-704(4); used with a valid elk license) is not refunded.
Optional, not counted above: Bonus point only (no application) (July 1 - Sept 30, per species) $25.
▸ Every Fee, With Sources
- Application fee per species (deer, elk, antelope and mountain lion drawings) · paid at application $5 Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-113 Application fees
- Base hunting license (annual, assessed with first hunting license or application) · paid at application $50 Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-116 Base hunting license…
- Conservation license (prerequisite for all licenses) · paid at application $10 Montana FWP 2026 Hunting Requirements
- Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Pass (16 and older) · paid at application $7.50 Montana FWP 2026 Nonresident License Fees
- General Elk Combination license (elk tag + fishing + upland bird); alternative to the Big Game Combination · paid at application, refundable $1,112 Montana FWP 2026 Nonresident License Fees
- Bonus point bought with an application (per species; required for accumulated points to count) · paid with the application, drawn or not; skip it and no point is added this year $20 Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-113 Application fees
- Special elk permit (statutory fee, MCA 87-2-704(4); used with a valid elk license) · paid at application $4 Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-704 Regulation of special elk…
Details
Odds by Point Level · 2012 Draw
| Points | Chance | Applied | Drew |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 ← you | 34% | 48 | 14 |
| 1 | 56% | 20 | 8 |
| 2 | 87% | 7 | 6 |
| 3 | 100% | — | — |
| 4 | >99% | 1 | 1 |
| 5–10 | 100% same at every level | — | — |
Expected weighted draw over the common pool, scaled to the nonresident cap. A dash means Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks did not publish a count for that level: it prints exact counts around the cut and folds the rest into a band. As a lower choice, 590-15 drew no one in 2012, so lower-choice odds are left out.
Draw results: Montana FWP 2012 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2, retrieved Sep 1, 2026.
How It Hunted, 2025
| Who | Hunters | Harvest | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| All of Hunting District 590 | — | 766 | — |
Across every license type in Hunting District 590, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks counted 766 elk taken in 2025 (hunter counts not published). Montana's figures blend mandatory reporting with a phone and mail survey. FWP does not publish district-level hunter counts for elk or antelope, so success rates are missing for those. Source: Montana FWP 2025 Elk Harvest Estimates; Montana FWP 2024 Elk Harvest Estimates.
▸ Year-by-Year Numbers 5 draws
The standard draw for nonresidents, one row per year.
| Year | Tags | Applicants | Per Tag | Points Needed | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 45 | 108 | 2.4 | — | Montana FWP 2012 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2 |
| 2011 | 38 | 121 | 3.2 | — | Montana FWP 2011 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2 |
| 2010 | 400 | 96 | 0.2 | — | Montana FWP 2010 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2 |
| 2009 | 510 | 102 | 0.2 | — | Montana FWP 2009 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 5 |
| 2008 | — | 64 | — | — | Montana FWP 2008 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 5 |
Other Licenses Valid in Hunting District 590
- 590-00 Elk B License 590-00 10 tags · 8 applied 72%
- 590-20 Elk Permit 590-20 — Either-sex Elk Sep 5 – Dec 20 · 38 tags · 120 applied 3%
- 590-21 Elk Permit 590-21 — Either-sex Elk Sep 4 – Dec 19 · 8 tags · 10 applied 31%
- 590-80 Elk B License 590-80 6 tags · 6 applied 68%
- 590-81 Elk B License 590-81 3 tags · 4 applied 75% (small sample)
Odds at your points, nonresident, standard class where offered. * fewer than 5 tags.
▸ Legal Cartridges 23 on file for Montana elk
23 cartridges on file are legal for elk with a rifle in Montana. Rules and sources: Montana hunting laws.
▸ Sources 17
- Montana FWP 2012 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2 · draw results, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- Montana FWP 2011 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2 · earlier draws, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- Montana FWP 2010 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 2 · earlier draws, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- Montana FWP 2009 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 5 · earlier draws, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- Montana FWP 2008 Elk Permit Drawing Statistics Report, p. 5 · earlier draws, retrieved Sep 1, 2026
- Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-117 License bonus point system draw rules, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-113 Application fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-116 Base hunting license… fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2026 Hunting Requirements fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2026 Nonresident License Fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana Legislature 2026 MCA 87-2-704 Regulation of special elk… fees, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2025 Elk Harvest Estimates harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2024 Elk Harvest Estimates harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2023 Elk Harvest Estimates harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2022 Elk Harvest Estimates harvest, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2026 Deer and Elk Hunting Districts boundary, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
- Montana FWP 2026-2027 Deer Elk Lion Hunting District… land ownership, retrieved Aug 31, 2026
About These Numbers
Odds are from the 2012 draw, the latest on file, computed from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks' published results (expected weighted draw over the common pool, scaled to the nonresident cap). 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.
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We don't take applications: check Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks's site and apply there.
Prior-draw odds from Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks' results, not a forecast · All Montana elk hunts