“The Silver State” first gained its nickname in 1859 when silver was first discovered in the state, leading to a regional migration boom. Since then, hunters have been making their own migrations every season to chase the state’s mule deer, trophy bull elk, pronghorn, black bear, and more.

High-end trophy bull elk are taken in Nevada every year with some very good tags available. The state uses a squared bonus point system (optional) with no tags reserved for the highest point holders, so it’s possible to draw any available tag even if you have few or no points. There are also quite a few options for mule deer tags across the state, including some early-season archery options with reasonable draw odds.

The 2024 Nevada Big Game Regulations are available here. The big game application period began on March 25 and ends on May 8, with draw results scheduled to be released on May 17.

Hunters may apply for tags with the Nevada Department of Wildlife here. 

Huntin’ Fool’s Nevada page is an excellent, updated resource for ongoing Nevada draw changes.

Nevada Draw Process FAQs

Application Dates and Deadlines: Huntin’ Fool lines out Nevada dates and deadlines.

Free for onX Hunt Elite members, Hunt Reminder’s Nevada page is also an excellent resource for timely application season reminders.

Hunting license and species costs for tags usually include:

• Application Fee
• Hunting License Fee to apply (usually need a qualifying license before you can apply)
• Species Fee (This is what you pay for the animal you want to hunt. Some you pay upfront at application, some you pay for once you get the tag.)
• Points-Only fee (fees for people just buying points and not actually applying for a hunt)

Point System

• Nevada uses a squared Bonus Point system.
• Bonus Points are like raffle tickets: the more you have, the more “chances” you have in the draw.
• You get one chance for your current application, and then your current Bonus Point total is squared and you get that many more chances in the drawing (so with 4 points, you’d get 17 chances, 1 + [4*4]).
• If you apply for a tag and are unsuccessful, you will be awarded a Bonus Point for that species if you purchased a hunting license with your application ($38 for Residents, $155 for nonresidents in 2022).
• You can also apply for Bonus Points only but you still need to purchase a hunting license for that application year.
• If you draw your Bonus Point total will be purged to zero for that species.
• If you fail to apply for a species for two consecutive years, your Bonus Point for that species will be lost.
• Nevada separates Bonus Point categories for species, subspecies, and gender which allows you to accumulate Bonus Points specifically for antlerless deer and elk hunts, as well as spike elk and horns shorter than ears antelope.

Tag Allocation

• In Nevada, approximately 15% of the total tags for a hunt code are issued to nonresidents but that percentage can vary.
• In general, Nevada uses separate hunt codes for residents and nonresidents with a set total tag quota for every hunt by residency type.

Useful Links

• Access the onX Hunt Complete Package for Western Application Research.
• Log Into Hunt Research Tools To Start Your 2024 Application Season.
• View Nevada Hunting Regulations.
• Apply for Your Nevada Hunting Tags.
• Read Nevada Hunting News and Updates.

onX Hunt’s Top Four State Application Tips

1. To maximize your overall chances to draw across all your hunt choices, you want to order the five hunt choices on your application from hardest to draw (first choice) to easiest to draw (fifth choice).
2. Draw odds can be low for a good majority of the hunts in Nevada including the “middle” tier (particularly for nonresidents). If you’re serious about using your accumulated Nevada bonus points, take advantage of the five application choices you are allowed by choosing hunts that are in less demand at choice four and five.
3. If desert sheep or California bighorn are on your lifetime bucket list, you should be applying in Nevada if your budget allows.
4. Nevada has some species specific waiting periods if you draw successfully. If you draw an antlered elk tag, you must wait seven years before you are eligible to apply again. For buck antelope the waiting period is three years, and for bighorn sheep and mountain goat the waiting period is 10 years. There are no waiting periods for antlerless elk or deer (including antlered).

Your One-Stop Application Season Stop

To maximize your time spent researching and applying—and to help you build your strategy to successfully draw in 2024 and beyond—we’re providing onX Hunt Elite Members with FREE services in one comprehensive package:

• Hunt Research Tools: In-Depth Draw Odds and Application Tools
• Huntin’ Fool: Boots-on-the-Ground Research and Insight
• HuntReminder: Worry-Free Text and Email Reminder Service
• onX Hunt: Map Your Hunt With Research Layers