Colorado Big Game Hunting Seasons: Dates, Draws, and Fees

Colorado big game hunting seasons run from September 2 through November 22, 2026, spread across an archery season, a muzzleloader window, and four rifle seasons. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) manages elk, mule deer, pronghorn, bear, moose, bighorn sheep, and mountain goat under Title 33 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, and most licenses come through a competitive draw with a primary application deadline in early April. If you want a tag for fall, you need to be planning in winter.

2026 Season Dates

Archery opens the calendar. Elk archery runs September 2 through September 30, a 29-day season overlapping the rut, when bulls are bugling and more responsive to calling. Archery deer runs the same window, and archers can pursue bear with the right license.

Muzzleloader season is a nine-day window from September 12 through September 20, sitting inside the archery season. Equipment is restricted to primitive firearms, and CPW limits the sight and ignition systems allowed.¹ Check the current regulations brochure for exact specifications before you go; a violation can cost you the hunt.

The four rifle seasons carry through mid-October to late November:

First rifle: October 14–18 (elk only, entirely limited-entry)
Second rifle: October 24–November 1 (deer and elk combined)
Third rifle: November 7–15 (deer and elk combined)
Fourth rifle: November 18–22 (deer and elk combined, entirely limited-entry)

Second and third seasons see the heaviest participation because some units offer over-the-counter elk tags during those windows. Fourth season is the deep-snow hunt, targeting animals migrating to lower-elevation winter range, and every hunter in the field holds a license specific to that unit and species.¹

Drawn Tags and Over-the-Counter Options

Colorado uses two licensing tracks. Limited licenses are distributed through the draw and capped per unit and species. Over-the-counter (OTC) licenses are unrestricted in quantity but confined to certain units, seasons, and methods of take.²

For elk, OTC licenses exist only for rifle seasons and may be either-sex, antlerless, or antlered depending on the unit. No OTC archery or muzzleloader elk licenses are available. Deer, pronghorn, and bear are almost entirely limited-draw. If you’re flexible about where and when to hunt elk, an OTC tag gives you a guaranteed opportunity without entering the draw, with the tradeoff of heavier hunting pressure in those units.

What You Need Before You Apply

A few pieces have to be in place before you can enter the draw or buy any tag. Missing one blocks the whole application.

Customer Identification Number

Every hunter needs a Customer Identification Number (CID) through CPW’s online system at cpwshop.com. Your CID account holds applications, license purchases, and preference point tracking. If you’re claiming resident rates, a valid Colorado driver’s license or state ID has to be linked to the account.

Qualifying License

Colorado requires a qualifying license before you can submit a big game draw application. The common options are a resident spring turkey license at $35.76 or a resident annual small game license at $33.96. Nonresidents pay $183.94 for spring turkey or $93.78 for annual small game. Youth hunters under 18 get significantly reduced rates, including a $1.40 small game license.³

Habitat Stamp

Every hunter aged 18 through 64 must purchase a Colorado Wildlife Habitat Stamp before applying for or purchasing a hunting license. The stamp costs $12.47 and is required once per year. Revenue funds land conservation. Hunters who are mobility-impaired under CPW’s rules and those holding certain lifetime licenses are exempt.⁴

Hunter Education

Anyone born on or after January 1, 1949, must complete a certified hunter education course before hunting in Colorado.⁵ Out-of-state hunters can use their home state’s certificate if it came from a recognized program. Colorado also offers a one-time apprentice license for hunters aged 12 and older who haven’t yet completed hunter education, allowing them to hunt for one license year under supervision. The apprentice option is available once per lifetime.

How the Primary Draw Works

The primary draw is your main shot at limited licenses for elk, deer, pronghorn, bear, moose, bighorn sheep, and mountain goat. Applications go through cpwshop.com. You enter specific hunt codes corresponding to the species, unit, season, and sex you want, and each application allows up to four hunt choices to improve odds.⁶

For 2026, the primary draw application deadline falls in early April. Confirm the exact date on CPW’s website, because missing it pushes you to the secondary draw or leftovers. Be meticulous with hunt codes. A wrong code can stick you with a tag for a unit you never intended to hunt, and there’s no easy fix after the draw runs.

Processing fees are $8.93 for residents and $11.49 for nonresidents, non-refundable whether you draw or not. Draw results for 2026 post online between May 26 and May 29. If you draw, the remaining license fee is charged to the credit card on file. If that charge fails and you don’t pay by the deadline, your license is forfeited and all preference points used to draw it are gone with no option for restoration.⁶

Secondary Draw and Leftover Licenses

Miss the primary or come up empty, and there are two more chances at a limited license.

The secondary draw opens June 18, 2026, with a deadline of June 30 at 8:00 PM MDT. Results post July 7. Anyone can apply regardless of whether they entered the primary. You can submit one application per species with up to four hunt choices, but group applications are not accepted, and preference points are neither used nor awarded. Youth hunters aged 12 to 17 get a real advantage: CPW processes all youth choices before adult choices, giving them 100% preference on every available hunt code.⁷

Licenses still available after both draws go on sale August 4, 2026, at 9:00 AM MDT on a first-come, first-served basis, online at cpwshop.com, by phone, or through authorized agents. Leftovers don’t require a qualifying license, an application, or preference points. You need a government-issued ID, hunter education (if born on or after January 1, 1949), and a habitat stamp.⁸

CPW also reissues licenses surrendered or refunded during the season. A preview list posts Tuesdays at 11:00 AM MT, with those licenses going on sale the following Wednesday around 11:00 AM MT. Unsold preview licenses roll into the general leftover pool as it refreshes. Checking the reissue list weekly is one of the better ways to pick up a quality tag after the draws have passed.⁸

Preference Points

Colorado runs two preference point systems depending on species, and knowing which applies to your hunt matters.

Elk, deer, pronghorn, bear, and turkey use a standard system. Apply, fail to draw your first choice, and you earn one preference point for next year. Points for these species are free. When you draw your first-choice license, all your accumulated points for that species reset to zero.⁶

Moose, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, and mountain goat use a weighted system. After you accumulate three regular preference points and still don’t draw, subsequent points become weighted, giving you increasingly better odds. These species carry a preference point fee of $50 for residents and $100 for nonresidents, waived for youth and resident lifetime license holders. Desert bighorn sheep does not award preference points at all.⁶

If you draw and later can’t hunt, timing matters. Licenses surrendered during CPW’s posted surrender period are eligible for both a monetary refund and full restoration of your preference points to pre-draw levels. Surrender after that window closes and you can get either a refund or point restoration, but not both. Let the payment deadline pass without paying and your points are simply gone.⁶

License Fees

Fees vary sharply between residents and nonresidents. Approximate costs for adult licenses:

Resident elk: $67.86
Resident deer: $49.15
Resident pronghorn: $47.91
Nonresident elk (combo with fishing): $825.03
Nonresident deer (combo with fishing): $494.47
Nonresident pronghorn: $481.52
Youth resident and nonresident deer/elk: $18.90

Nonresident deer and elk licenses are sold as combination licenses that include fishing privileges. These fees stack on top of the qualifying license, habitat stamp, and application processing fee. CPW adjusts fees periodically, so check the current schedule on cpwshop.com before budgeting.²

Colorado also caps the share of limited licenses going to nonresidents. High-demand hunt codes use an 80/20 resident-to-nonresident split; all other hunt codes use 75/25.⁹ In trophy-quality units where draw odds are already long, that 20% nonresident allocation can mean years of accumulated points before an out-of-state hunter draws.

In the Field

Tagging and Evidence of Sex

The moment you take a big game animal, you must sign, date, and detach the carcass tag from your license and attach it to the carcass. Signing the tag before harvest is illegal. The tag stays on the carcass during transport, in camp, and in storage until the meat is fully processed.¹⁰

Evidence of sex must remain naturally attached to the carcass during transport. A detached head carried alongside doesn’t count. For bulls, evidence includes the head with antlers attached or reproductive organs attached to a portion of the carcass. For cows, evidence includes the head, udder, or vulva naturally attached. If you’ve quartered or deboned, the evidence must be attached to a quarter or major portion, and all parts must travel together. The requirement lifts once meat is processed, wrapped, frozen, or stored at home.¹⁰

Hunter Orange or Pink

Colorado law requires at least 500 square inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange or fluorescent pink worn on an outer garment above the waist while hunting deer, elk, pronghorn, moose, or bear with any firearm license. Archers hunting during archery-only seasons are exempt but often wear it anyway for safety.¹¹

Chronic Wasting Disease Testing

For the 2026 season, CPW requires mandatory CWD test sample submission for elk harvested during rifle seasons from specific hunt codes. Not every hunt code within a GMU is selected, so check pages 41–52 of the 2026 Big Game Brochure to see whether your hunt code requires testing. Mandatory testing is free, and there is no mandatory deer testing for 2026.¹² CPW waives the fee for voluntary submissions from archery and muzzleloader elk taken in GMUs where rifle hunt codes were selected. If you’re transporting a carcass across state lines, many states prohibit importing brain or spinal column tissue from CWD-endemic areas, so check import rules for every state along your route.

Penalties for False Applications

Providing false information on a license application is a misdemeanor. For big game licenses, the fine equals twice the cost of the most expensive license for that species, and CPW assesses 15 license suspension points against your record.¹³ For a nonresident elk license, the fine alone can top $1,600. Accumulated suspension points can result in loss of all hunting and fishing privileges in Colorado, and because of interstate wildlife compacts, a suspension here can follow you to other states.

1
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. 2025-2029 Big Game Season Structure
2
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Over-the-Counter (OTC) Licenses
3
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Qualifying License
4
Justia Law. Colorado Code Title 33 – 33-4-102.7
5
Justia Law. Colorado Code Title 33 – 33-6-107
6
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Primary Draw
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Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Secondary Draw
8
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Leftover (Remaining) and Reissued Licenses
9
Engage CPW. Big Game License Distribution
10
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Elk – In the Field
11
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Deer – In the Field
12
Colorado Parks and Wildlife. Chronic Wasting Disease
13
Colorado General Assembly. Colorado Revised Statutes 2024 Title 33