Where do I buy a Missouri hunting license?

Missouri hunting licenses and tags are sold by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) through its official licensing site. Buy direct from the agency rather than a reseller, and complete hunter education first if your birth year requires it.

When is Missouri hunting season?

Seasons differ by species, weapon and zone, and the Missouri season dates change every year. Our Missouri deer guide summarizes the 2025-26 deer season structure; for every other species, check the current Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) regulations before you plan a hunt.

What can you hunt in Missouri?

Besides white-tailed deer, our species guides single out Missouri for whitetail deer, wild turkey, northern bobwhite quail, mourning dove, mallard, canada goose, eastern cottontail rabbit. Each species guide explains tags, seasons and tactics.

Where is public hunting land in Missouri?

Good starting points include Mark Twain National Forest, Peck Ranch Conservation Area, Ted Shanks Conservation Area. Confirm access rules, closures and special regulations with the managing agency before you go.

Hunting · State by State

Missouri Hunting Guide

What to hunt in Missouri, what it costs, the laws that matter and where the public land is — with the official Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) links.

No draw, no wait — Missouri sells nonresident tags over the counter for some of the best whitetail hunting in the Midwest.

Missouri's three big habitat zones hunt very differently: the Ozark Highlands across the south are steep, rocky, and heavily timbered with oak-hickory forest and lower deer densities but excellent public-land acreage; the northern and western glaciated plains are rolling row-crop country with the state's highest deer densities and best average antler size; and the Missouri/Mississippi River bottoms offer thick, flood-prone cover that historically produces trophy-class bucks for hunters willing to deal with mud and access challenges.

Agency: Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC)
Region: Midwest
Deer rank: #5 of 50
Species guides: 8

Missouri hunting license and tag costs

Deer license and tag prices as last reviewed. Other species' permits are listed in the agency fee schedule.

License / tag	Price
Resident firearms any-deer permit	approx. $17
Nonresident firearms any-deer permit	approx. $225
Nonresident archery permit	approx. $225
Resident/nonresident antlerless permits	Priced lower, availability varies by county

Missouri hunting laws to know

Rules that catch hunters out most often. Not a substitute for the regulations book.

Topic	Rule
Blaze orange	Solid blaze orange visible from all sides (cap plus shirt/vest/coat) required during any firearms deer season; archery-only hunters are exempt outside of firearms season overlap.
Baiting	Baiting and feeding deer is illegal statewide year-round on all lands, one of the strictest rules in the Midwest; mineral/feed sites must be removed well ahead of hunting.
Crossbows	Legal for all hunters during archery season, no permit or disability documentation required.
Sunday hunting	Allowed statewide.
Legal firearms	Centerfire rifles, shotguns, muzzleloaders and handguns meeting caliber minimums are legal during firearms season; Missouri does not restrict to shotgun/straight-wall only like some neighboring states.
Tagging/reporting	Harvest must be notched on the permit immediately and reported (telecheck) online or by phone by 10 p.m. the day after harvest.
CWD carcass transport	Whole carcasses from CWD Management Zone counties may not leave the zone; deboned meat, cleaned skulls/antlers, capes and similar processed parts are allowed to travel.
Hunter education	Required for anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 1967, before purchasing a firearms permit, with an apprentice exemption available.

Missouri deer season structure (2025-26)

Missouri sets exact dates annually; always confirm current-year season dates, county-specific antlerless permit availability, and CWD zone rules on the MDC website before you hunt.

Season	Weapon	Typical window
Archery	Bow / crossbow	Mid-Sept. – mid-Nov., reopening late Nov. – mid-Jan.
Early youth firearms	Firearms (youth)	Late Oct./early Nov. weekend
November firearms (main season)	Rifle / shotgun / muzzleloader	Mid-Nov., 11 days
Late youth firearms	Firearms (youth)	Early Jan. weekend
Antlerless portion	Firearms	Late Nov., several days
Alternative methods (muzzleloader)	Muzzleloader	Mid-to-late Dec.

What you can hunt in Missouri

Deer — White-tailed deer
Elite · ranked #5 of 50 for deer.
Whitetail Deer
Excellent buck quality with over-the-counter nonresident access
Access: Over-the-counter; buy online the day you leave
Wild Turkey
Dense Eastern subspecies population with generous public land
Access: Over-the-counter resident and nonresident tags
Northern Bobwhite Quail
Public conservation areas managed specifically for quail habitat
Access: Over-the-counter license
Mourning Dove
Strong Midwest dove numbers around harvested grain fields
Access: Over-the-counter license plus HIP; check public wildlife area field plantings
Mallard
Managed conservation areas with reservation-based blind draws
Access: Over-the-counter license plus duck stamp; daily blind draws at managed areas
Canada Goose
Strong resident and migratory numbers over harvested corn and bean fields
Access: Over-the-counter license plus duck stamp
Eastern Cottontail Rabbit
Good rabbit numbers on public walk-in access land
Access: Over-the-counter small-game license

Public hunting land in Missouri

Missouri's 1,000-plus conservation areas plus a share of the Mark Twain National Forest give nonresidents genuine public-land options across all three of the state's habitat types.

Mark Twain National Forest
National forest · Southern Missouri (Ozarks)
Roughly 1.5 million acres of Ozark hardwood ridges and hollows spread across multiple ranger districts, offering low-pressure timber hunting.
Official page
Peck Ranch Conservation Area
Conservation area · South-central Missouri (Ozarks)
Large, rugged Ozark tract known for elk restoration but also holding solid whitetail numbers in remote terrain.
Official page
Ted Shanks Conservation Area
Conservation area · Northeast Missouri (Mississippi River bottoms)
Flood-prone river-bottom timber and wetlands along the Mississippi River, classic big-buck bottomland habitat.
Official page
Eleven Point Conservation Area
Conservation area · South-central Missouri (Ozarks)
Rugged Ozark ground along the Eleven Point River with a mix of timber and glades.
Whetstone Creek Conservation Area
Conservation area · Central Missouri
Rolling prairie-timber transition ground managed specifically with deer and turkey hunting in mind.
Fountain Grove Conservation Area
Conservation area · North-central Missouri
Large wetland/prairie-timber complex in the state's high-density northern agricultural belt.
Pershing State Forest/Conservation Area
State forest / conservation area · North-central Missouri
Bottomland timber and open ground in Linn County offering solid access to northern Missouri's better deer densities.

Official Missouri links

Last reviewed 2026-09.

Nearby state hunting guides

Questions

Frequently asked

Where do I buy a Missouri hunting license?: Missouri hunting licenses and tags are sold by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) through its official licensing site. Buy direct from the agency rather than a reseller, and complete hunter education first if your birth year requires it.
When is Missouri hunting season?: Seasons differ by species, weapon and zone, and the Missouri season dates change every year. Our Missouri deer guide summarizes the 2025-26 deer season structure; for every other species, check the current Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) regulations before you plan a hunt.
What can you hunt in Missouri?: Besides white-tailed deer, our species guides single out Missouri for whitetail deer, wild turkey, northern bobwhite quail, mourning dove, mallard, canada goose, eastern cottontail rabbit. Each species guide explains tags, seasons and tactics.
Where is public hunting land in Missouri?: Good starting points include Mark Twain National Forest, Peck Ranch Conservation Area, Ted Shanks Conservation Area. Confirm access rules, closures and special regulations with the managing agency before you go.