Nebraska Hunting License: Cost, Requirements & How to Buy
A Nebraska hunting license costs $18 for a resident adult and $125 for a non-resident adult (fees verified 2026-09-12).
Nebraska raised its hunt and fish permit fees for 2026, the first increase in years, and the number that catches most hunters off guard isn't the base permit, it's the $25 Habitat Stamp required alongside it for nearly everyone.
Base small-game hunt permit shown. A $25 Habitat Stamp is required alongside it for nearly every hunter age 16+, resident and non-resident alike; resident youth and senior permit holders, and landowners hunting their own land, are exempt. Deer, antelope and other big game need separate permits. Hunters ages 12-29 must complete hunter (and, for archery/crossbow big game, bowhunter) education and carry proof while hunting; younger hunters may hunt supervised under an apprentice exemption before completing the course.
Fee last verified 2026-09-12.
Heading out for Nebraska 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 a Nebraska hunting permit costs
Residents pay $18 for the annual small-game hunt permit; non-residents pay $125. A $25 Habitat Stamp is required in addition to the permit for nearly every hunter age 16 and up, resident or non-resident, so the realistic total is closer to $43 resident/$150 non-resident before any species-specific tags. Resident youth and senior permit holders, and landowners hunting their own land, are exempt from the stamp.
Hunter and bowhunter education
Hunters ages 12 through 29 must complete hunter education certification and carry proof while hunting with a firearm or airgun; bowhunter education is separately required for the same age range to hunt big game with a bow or crossbow. Hunters under 12, or those 12-29 who haven't yet taken the course, can hunt under a one-time apprentice exemption while accompanied by a licensed adult 19 or older.
License year and deadlines
Nebraska permits run the calendar year, January 1 through December 31, expiring at midnight on the last day regardless of purchase date.
How to buy your Nebraska hunting permit
GoOutdoorsNE.com is the state's sole authorized online permit provider, selling the hunt permit, Habitat Stamp and any species tags together. Permits are also available at Game and Parks offices statewide or by mail.
Hunting in Nebraska: what to expect
Nebraska's Sandhills region in the north-central part of the state is a genuinely unusual landscape, rolling grass-stabilized dunes over a vast underground aquifer, and it holds strong pheasant and prairie grouse populations along with good deer hunting on the ranches that dominate the region. The Rainwater Basin in south-central Nebraska is one of the most important waterfowl staging areas on the Central Flyway each spring and fall, drawing enormous concentrations of geese and ducks that funnel through on migration.
Public land and access programs
Nebraska is overwhelmingly private land, so its Open Fields and Waters program, which pays landowners to allow public hunting access on enrolled acreage, matters more here than in states with abundant federal or state forest. Wildlife Management Areas add a smaller but reliable base of true public land scattered across the state, concentrated most heavily along the Platte River corridor and in the Sandhills.
How to renew a Nebraska hunting license
There is no separate renewal process in Nebraska. 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. Permits are valid for the calendar year, Jan 1 through Dec 31.
The fastest route is the official Nebraska 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 Nebraska 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.