Nebraska Deer — Plains

Plains

Nebraska Plains covers 4,080,969 acres and lies 11 miles south-east of Alliance and 45 miles east of Scottsbluff. 1% of it is public land, mostly wildlife refuge (1%). In 2018, hunters took 1,439 mule deer here. The 2026 draw put up 150 nonresident tags here for 164 first-choice applicants.

Nonresident tags (2026):150 Applicants:164 Public land:1% Size:4,080,969 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every deer license type on offer in Plains, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice nonresident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.

1 license on offer · 150 tags · 164 applicants in the 2026 draw

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
  • PLAINS Plains 150 tags · 164 applicants · needed 0 pts
    57% Real chance
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.
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 $0 $0 $369

Application window: opens Jun 1, closes Jun 12, 2027 (expected). Full fee breakdown.

The country

Alliance Sidney Chadron North Platte Valentine
Plains within Nebraska
PINE-RIDGE-MDCA PLATTE-MDCA SANDHILLS UPPER-PLATTE Alliance Scottsbluff Sidney Chadron Ogallala
Plains and its neighbours
Zoomable USGS topo, aerial imagery and shaded relief, with the neighboring areas drawn on.

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

Who owns the ground

  • Private 4,025,893 ac · 99%
  • National Wildlife Refuge 49,352 ac · 1%
  • State land 5,667 ac · 0%
  • Bureau of Reclamation 56 ac · 0%

Source: NGPC Public Access Atlas land layers: Other Public Recreation Lands, NGPC Properties 2024-2025, Park Areas, Conservation Partner Lands

How the hunting has gone

What Nebraska Game and Parks Commission publishes for this area after each season — harvest statistics for everyone who hunted it, not draw odds and not a forecast.

Mule Deer

Season Harvest
2018 1,439
2017 1,443

White-tailed Deer

Season Harvest
2018 575
2017 601

What people carried (2025 harvest)

  • Archery 58 · 40%
  • Muzzleloader 87 · 60%

What the agency says about the area

NGPC deer management unit "Plains"; permits drawn as Plains

Source: Nebraska Big Game Guide 2026 (unit names, public-land statements)

Boundary: Deer Management Units (NGPC hosted feature layer, Deer_Mangement_Units_2022)

Harvest: 2026 Big Game Recommendation Book (2025 season harvest; comparisons 2021-2025)

Harvest: 2025 Big Game Recommendation Book (2024 season harvest; comparisons 2020-2024)

Harvest: 2024 Big Game Recommendation Book (2023 season harvest; comparisons 2019-2023)

How we compute draw odds · All Nebraska deer hunts