Non-Resident Hunting License Cost by State
A non-resident hunting license is what you buy to hunt in a state you do not live in, and it is almost never the same product as the resident license at a higher price. The table below sorts forty states by the annual non-resident fee, cheapest first, and puts the cheapest trip license next to it when the state sells one. Read the resident column too: the markup is how you tell a $90 Indiana license from a $90 Wisconsin license that does not include deer.
| State | Resident | Non-resident | vs resident | Trip license |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | $10 | $50 | 5× | - |
| Illinois | $12.50 | $57.75 | 4.6× | - |
| Rhode Island | $24 | $65 | 2.7× | $20 |
| Wyoming | $27 | $74 | 2.7× | - |
| Indiana | $20 | $90 | 4.5× | - |
| New Mexico | $25 | $90 | 3.6× | - |
| Wisconsin | $18 | $90 | 5× | - |
| Connecticut | $19 | $91 | 4.8× | - |
| Hawaii | $10 | $95 | 9.5× | - |
| New York | $22 | $100 | 4.5× | - |
| Pennsylvania | $20.97 | $101.97 | 4.9× | - |
| Minnesota | $22 | $102 | 4.6× | - |
| Vermont | $28 | $102 | 3.6× | - |
| Colorado | $38.49 | $104.86 | 2.7× | - |
| Missouri | $11.50 | $108.50 | 9.4× | - |
| Virginia | $23 | $111 | 4.8× | - |
| Massachusetts | $40 | $112 | 2.8× | - |
| New Hampshire | $32 | $113 | 3.5× | $25 |
| Maine | $26 | $115 | 4.4× | - |
| West Virginia | $19 | $119 | 6.3× | - |
| Nebraska | $18 | $125 | 6.9× | - |
| South Carolina | $12 | $125 | 10.4× | $40 |
| Kansas | $27.50 | $127.50 | 4.6× | - |
| Iowa | $22 | $131 | 6× | - |
| New Jersey | $27.50 | $135.50 | 4.9× | $36.50 |
| South Dakota | $36 | $142 | 3.9× | - |
| Utah | $40 | $144 | 3.6× | - |
| Georgia | $15 | $150 | 10× | - |
| North Dakota | $20 | $150 | 7.5× | - |
| Michigan | $11 | $151 | 13.7× | $50 |
| Florida | $17 | $151.50 | 8.9× | $46.50 |
| Nevada | $38 | $155 | 4.1× | - |
| Alaska | $45 | $160 | 3.6× | - |
| Arizona | $37 | $160 | 4.3× | - |
| Maryland | $35 | $160 | 4.6× | - |
| Kentucky | $28.54 | $169.12 | 5.9× | - |
| Ohio | $19 | $180.96 | 9.5× | $40.56 |
| Idaho | $15.75 | $185 | 11.7× | - |
| Oregon | $39 | $193 | 4.9× | - |
| Delaware | $39.50 | $199.50 | 5.1× | $75 |
| Louisiana | $20 | $200 | 10× | - |
| Oklahoma | $36 | $209 | 5.8× | - |
| California | $64.54 | $225.46 | 3.5× | - |
| North Carolina | $49 | $248 | 5.1× | $198 |
| Washington | $55.13 | $252.47 | 4.6× | - |
| Mississippi | $25 | $300 | 12× | $150 |
| Tennessee | $33 | $305 | 9.2× | $214 |
| Texas | $25 | $315 | 12.6× | $48 |
| Arkansas | $10.50 | $410 | 39× | - |
| Alabama | $35.30 | $411.95 | 11.7× | $179.05 |
Why non-resident hunting licenses cost more
States fund wildlife management with a mix of resident license sales, general tax revenue, and federal Pittman-Robertson money. Someone who lives in the state already pays into that mix; a visitor does not. The non-resident hunting license is the surcharge that fills the gap, and in several states it is also a pressure valve: a high enough fee, plus a limited tag quota, to keep out-of-state hunters from crowding the public land that residents think of as theirs.
That is why the ratio in the table jumps around. Illinois charges about 4.6 times the resident rate. Alabama charges about 11.7 times. Neither number is a mistake: Illinois's non-resident license is still a cheap $57.75 because the resident license is $12.50, while Alabama's $411.95 is an all-game annual that residents buy for $35.30. Always compare the same license type, not just the multiplier.
How to read the annual fee
The cheapest row is Montana at $50. That is the base hunting license only. Montana also requires a conservation license, and deer and elk are separate purchases, often limited for non-residents. Treating $50 as the cost of a Montana elk hunt is how people get a surprise at checkout. The same caveat applies to Missouri ($108.50 small game, $305.50 non-resident deer), Wisconsin ($90 small game, $200 gun-deer), and Colorado ($104.86 small game, with non-resident elk in the mid-hundreds).
The dearest row is Alabama at $411.95 for the annual all-game license, with Arkansas close behind at $410. Texas is $315, Tennessee $305, North Carolina $248 (base plus big-game privilege), California $225.46 before a deer tag. If you are hunting deer, the number in this table is the floor, not the total.
When a trip license is cheaper than the annual
Florida sells a 10-day non-resident hunting license for $46.50, against a $151.50 annual, and that 10-day option is not valid for turkey. Alabama's 3-day is $179.05 and the 10-day is $253.95, both well under the $411.95 annual. North Carolina's 10-day hunting license plus big game privilege is $198 against $248; Tennessee's 7-day all-game is $214 against $305. A weekend in those states is a trip license. A full season, or a hunt that spans more days than the trip product allows, is still the annual.
Most of the states in this table do not have a short-term hunting license in our dataset. A dash in the trip column means we only list the annual, not that the state has no other products. Ohio's 3-day tourist license is $40.56 and is not valid for deer, turkey or furbearers. Pennsylvania does not sell a matching short-term hunting license in our file.
What the annual still does not include
Hunter education is required for first-time hunters in every state in this table. An out-of-state certificate is usually accepted if it meets the destination state's standard, but bring the card; a license agent will not take your word for it. Federal duck stamps, HIP registration, and state waterfowl stamps stack on top wherever you hunt migratory birds. National forest or WMA user permits are extra in Virginia, Georgia, and others.
Big-game tags and draws are the other half of the bill. Colorado, Montana, and California run limited licenses that can cost more than the hunting license and can leave you with a license and nothing to hunt if you miss the application window. Buying the non-resident hunting license is step one, not the hunt.
How to buy as a visitor
Every row links to that state's hunting license page, which has the official buy URL and the fee source. Buy from the state portal, not a third-party "license service." You will need proof that you are not a resident of that state (usually a driver's license from home) and, for first hunts, hunter education. Several states email a digital copy the same day; a few still mail paper if you ask, which is the wrong choice if you are hunting this weekend.
Browse every state guide, see what a hunting license costs in every state, compare non-resident fishing license cost or non-resident boat registration cost , use the license finder for a single fee and the official buy link, or the license cost calculator to line up two to four specific states side by side.