Colorado uses species-specific hunt codes and GMUs. Nonresidents apply online or by phone for primary and secondary draws, may buy OTC licenses where offered, and may pursue leftover/reissued licenses after draw cycles. Preference points apply only in the primary draw for deer, elk, pronghorn, bear, moose, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, and mountain goat; desert bighorn sheep has no preference points.

Open portal

Timezone: Mountain Time

Deer

Limited deer draw licenses

high

draw

nonresident

map: gmu

Hunt codes: hunt-code tables in 2026 Big Game brochure

Units: GMU-specific

Deadlines: Primary draw deadline 2026-04-07 20:00 MT • Secondary draw deadline 2026-06-30 20:00 MT

Fees: Nonresident adult deer/fishing combo $506.92 • Nonresident youth/fishing combo $130.07

Open map layer

Deer

White-tailed deer OTC / late-rifle licenses

medium

otc

nonresident

map: gmu

Hunt codes: white-tailed-only tables in 2026 Big Game brochure

Units: GMU-specific

Deadlines: OTC sale starts 2026-08-04 09:00 MT where offered

Fees: Nonresident adult deer/fishing combo $506.92 • Nonresident youth/fishing combo $130.07

Open map layer

deer, elk, pronghorn

Landowner Preference Program vouchers

medium

landowner

nonresident

approx map: gmu

Hunt codes: depends on landowner voucher and GMU

Units: GMU-specific, private-land or unit-wide depending on voucher

Deadlines: Program/voucher-specific; verify current CPW LPP rules

Fees: CPW license fee due when voucher is converted; private voucher market terms are outside official fee schedule

Prerequisites

• CPW Shop account/CID through cpw.state.co.us/buy-apply or cpwshop.com.
• Current-year qualifying hunting license required before applying for big-game draws.
• 2026 Habitat Stamp required for ages 18-64 unless exempt/lifetime; brochure lists $12.76.
• Nonresident application processing fee is $11.49 per species per draw and nonrefundable.
• Proof of hunter education required as applicable; SSN or ITIN required for hunters age 12+.
• Nonresident allocation caps apply in the primary draw: deer/elk/pronghorn/bear up to 20% for hunt codes needing 6+ resident points, up to 25% for fewer than 6 resident points; sheep/goat limited licenses allocate 10% to nonresidents.

Deer map gaps

• Complete hunt-code-to-GMU extraction is needed for white-tailed deer OTC, OTC archery pronghorn, OTC rifle elk, east-of-I-25 OTC archery elk, moose, sheep, and goat tables.

Jeremiah guide notes

What should a nonresident do first?

Create or confirm a CPW Shop account/CID, verify hunter education and ID details, then buy the required qualifying license and Habitat Stamp before submitting draw applications.

Is Colorado nonresident archery elk still OTC?

Not broadly. CPW says nonresidents can no longer use unlimited OTC archery elk in GMUs west of I-25 and GMU 140; those are now limited nonresident V1A draw licenses. Some east-of-I-25 archery elk OTC opportunity remains and must be verified in the current brochure.

Do points matter in the secondary draw?

No. Preference points are not used or generated in the secondary draw, and nonresident allocation caps do not apply there.

What are the realistic non-draw options?

Look at OTC rifle elk, OTC/add-on bear, OTC archery pronghorn, white-tailed-only deer where offered, leftover limited licenses, and weekly reissues. Verify species, sex, GMU, method, and private-land restrictions before buying.

How do sheep, goat, and moose points work?

Moose, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, and mountain goat use weighted preference after three regular points. Desert bighorn sheep does not use preference points.

Official sources

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Big Game

Agency landing page for current big-game brochures, species pages, planning links, and official hunting information.

2026 Colorado Big Game Hunting Brochure

Deer, elk, pronghorn, bear, moose rules, deadlines, fees, nonresident allocations, OTC, leftover, reissue, and hunt-code structure.

2026 Colorado Sheep & Goat Hunting Brochure

Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, desert bighorn sheep, mountain goat rules, fees, deadlines, nonresident allocation, weighted preference, return/reissue flow.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Nonresidents

Nonresident overview and licensing context.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Primary Draw

Draw-flow and statistics pointers.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Secondary Draw

Secondary draw context.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Landowner Preference Program

Landowner/voucher pathway flag for deer, elk, and pronghorn.

Colorado CPW GMU GIS layers

Available Boondoggle map layer slugs for Colorado.

Agency portals

Official agency, license/application, regulations, draw odds, and harvest stats.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife

US West

high

Agency Application portal Regulations Draw odds / stats Harvest stats

Official CPW shop portal is operated separately at CPWShop/Aspira. Statistics URL is a species statistics page; similar CPW pages exist for elk, pronghorn, bear, etc.

Official agency links are public. Private account tracking is available separately when saved application data exists.

Deadlines

Application, draw, reporting, and point purchase reminders.

No deadlines seeded yet.

Unit boundary source

Official map/GIS source for the future clickable unit-level map.

machine readable

CPW Administrative Boundary Data - GMU Boundary layers

Colorado Parks and Wildlife

GMU

big game

bighorn sheep

mountain goat

Format: ArcGIS REST

Conversion: Query polygon layers 6, 7, and 8 with f=geojson; retain CPW layer ids/source date.

License/source notes: Official CPW ArcGIS hosted public service; check item terms before redistribution.

Open boundary source

Species available

Starter list for this jurisdiction.

No species data yet.

Applications

State/province-specific plans, submitted applications, draw status, and spend.

No applications yet.

Colorado (CO)

Huntable species in CO

Unit Map / Units

1

13

0

GIS

Deer opportunities

Agency portals

Deadlines

Unit boundary source

Species available

Applications