Nebraska Elk — Unit 3

Unit 3

Nebraska Unit 3 covers 645,490 acres and lies 16 miles south-east of Chadron and 44 miles north of Alliance. 3% of it is public land, mostly national forest (3%) and state land (1%). In 2025, hunters took 70 elk here. The 2026 draw put up 60 tags here.

Tags (2026):140 Applicants:498 Public land:3% Size:645,490 acres

Your chance of drawing here

Every elk license type on offer in Unit 3, with the prior-draw chance for a first-choice resident applicant. Type your points in to see your own number.

Chances are from the 2026 draw (the most recent) for a first-choice resident. "Points needed" = the cut in the last draw.

Simple view Odds at every point level

U3-ANTLERLESS-LO U3 Antlerless (landowner) 60 tags · Landowner

— Cut level
U3-BULL U3 Bull — · 498 applicants · needed 2 pts · Standard

<1% Point builder
U3-BULL-LO U3 Bull (landowner) — · needed 4 pts · Landowner

0% Point builder
U3-EARLY-ANTLERLESS U3 Early Antlerless 40 tags · Standard

45% Real chance
U3-LATE-ANTLERLESS U3 Late Antlerless 40 tags · Standard

34% Long shot

Hunt	Your odds (0 pts)	Points needed	Tags / applicants	License	Season
U3-ANTLERLESS-LO ↗ U3 Antlerless (landowner)	— Cut level	—	60 / —	Landowner	Aug 1 – Jan 31, 2027
U3-BULL ↗ U3 Bull	<1% Point builder	2 +1 since 2023	— / 498	Standard	Sep 1 – Dec 31, 2026
U3-BULL-LO ↗ U3 Bull (landowner)	0% Point builder	4 steady since 2023	— / —	Landowner	Sep 1 – Dec 31, 2026
U3-EARLY-ANTLERLESS ↗ U3 Early Antlerless	45% Real chance	—	40 / —	Standard	Aug 1 – Oct 31, 2026
U3-LATE-ANTLERLESS ↗ U3 Late Antlerless	34% Long shot	—	40 / —	Standard	Nov 1 – Jan 31, 2027

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 resident fees)

License	Up front	Gone if you miss	If you draw
Standard license	$11	$11	$232
Landowner license	$11	$11	$77

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

The country

Unit 3 within Nebraska

Unit 3 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 623,001 ac · 97%
National Forest 17,447 ac · 3%
State land 5,040 ac · 1%

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

Nearby areas

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. Nebraska Game and Parks Commission publishes these per hunt rather than per unit; the rows below add its own figures together, since a hunter holds one tag for the species in a season.