Indiana Hunting License: Cost, Requirements & How to Buy
A Indiana hunting license costs $20 for a resident adult and $90 for a non-resident adult (fees verified 2026-09-11).
Indiana's base hunting license is affordable and covers small game outright, but deer hunters, by far the largest group of Indiana hunters, will almost always end up buying the separate deer license bundle on top.
Resident deer license bundle is a separate $91; turkey license (spring or fall, not both) is $32 resident/$175 non-resident.
Fee last verified 2026-09-11.
Heading out for Indiana hunting? Game wardens require carrying physical or digital license proof and valid tags. Equip yourself with a waterproof license and tag pouch, rechargeable wide-beam LED headlamp, and corrosion-resistant multi-tool pliers before your trip.
What an Indiana hunting license costs
The resident annual hunting license is $20; non-residents pay $90 for the 2026-2027 season. Non-residents wanting a shorter commitment can buy a 5-day small game license for $50 instead of the full annual.
Deer and turkey licenses
The base hunting license doesn't include deer or turkey privileges; those are separate purchases. The resident deer license bundle runs $91, while non-residents pay $550 for the equivalent. A turkey license (valid for either spring or fall season, not both) costs $32 for residents and $175 for non-residents.
License year
Indiana's license year runs April 1 through March 31, so licenses bought any time after April 1 cover the full upcoming fall season through the following spring.
How to buy your Indiana hunting license
GoOutdoorsIN.com is the state's official online portal for hunting and fishing licenses. Licenses are also sold at authorized retailers statewide.
Hunting in Indiana: what to expect
Indiana is largely farmland, and its whitetail deer hunting reflects that: the state's agricultural counties in the south-central and southeastern regions consistently produce some of the biggest bucks, thanks to a mix of hardwood cover and high-quality farm forage. Indiana's public hunting land is more limited than states like Michigan or Pennsylvania, concentrated mostly in state forests and fish and wildlife areas, so many resident hunters rely on private-land access or leases. Waterfowl hunting along the state's river bottoms and reservoir systems is a smaller but genuine tradition, particularly around Lake Monroe and the Wabash River bottoms.
Public hunting land in Indiana
Indiana's state forests (Morgan-Monroe, Yellowwood and Harrison-Crawford chief among them) anchor public deer and turkey hunting in the state's hilly south-central region, and the Department of Natural Resources also manages a network of smaller Fish & Wildlife Areas scattered across the farm-belt counties further north. Access is more limited acre-for-acre than in neighboring Michigan, so hunters serious about public land here tend to scout well before opening weekend rather than relying on walk-in luck; the DNR's online property maps are worth checking before every trip since access rules and parking areas occasionally change season to season.
Deer bundle, turkey and the 5-day small game option
The $20 resident or $90 non-resident hunting license is small game. The resident deer license bundle is $91; non-residents pay $550 for the equivalent. Turkey (spring or fall, not both) is $32 resident or $175 non-resident. Non-residents who only want a few days of small game can buy a 5-day license for $50 instead of the $90 annual. License year runs April 1, 2026 through March 31, 2027.
Indiana is a private-land deer state. Fish and wildlife areas and state forests are the public pieces, and they are busy on opening weekend of firearms. If you do not have a farm or a permission slip, scout a property on the DNR map before you pay $550. A license without access is a receipt.
Hunter education is required for first-time hunters, and an out-of-state IHEA card usually transfers if you bring it to the counter or upload it to the GoOutdoorsIN profile before you buy. Apprentice options exist for a supervised first hunt; they are not a way for an unlicensed adult to hunt alone. Carry the card plus the deer bundle if a buck is the plan. Tags and check-in rules for deer are in the current hunting guide, not on the $20 small-game receipt. GoOutdoorsIN.com is the checkout for the deer bundle, turkey, and the 5-day small-game option, and a digital copy on your phone is enough if you screenshot it before you lose signal on a fish-and-wildlife area.
How to renew a Indiana hunting license
There is no separate renewal process in Indiana. A hunting license is not extended in place; when it expires you buy a new one for the next license year through the same system you used the first time, and your customer profile, hunter or angler ID and any saved payment details carry over so the second purchase takes a couple of minutes. License year runs Apr 1, 2026 – Mar 31, 2027.
The fastest route is the official Indiana online licensing portal, which also lets you print or download the new license and add any stamps, tags or endorsements in one transaction. In-person license agents (sporting goods stores, bait shops and, in many states, county clerks) sell the same license at the same price, so use whichever is closer. Buying before the old license lapses is not required, but it avoids an accidental gap if a season opens before you get round to it.
Planning more than one? See the Indiana fishing license page too, see how much a hunting license costs in every state, compare non-resident hunting fees across states, browse every state, or use the state license finder.