Missouri hunting license

How much is a Missouri hunting license?

A resident Missouri hunting license for small game, called the Small Game Hunting Permit, costs $11.50, and the nonresident version is $108.50, as listed by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) for the current permit year. It covers frogs, birds except turkey, and mammals except bear, deer and elk. Missouri sells hunting privileges as separate permits rather than one all-purpose license.

Deer and turkey are where most budgets go. A resident Firearms Any-Deer permit is $19.50, the Archer's Hunting Permit (deer and small game during archery season) is $22, and a resident antlerless deer permit is $7.50. Spring turkey is $19.50 for residents. Residents who also fish can buy the Small Game Hunting and Fishing Permit for $22.50.

Waterfowl and dove hunters add a Migratory Bird Hunting Permit ($8 resident, $60 nonresident) and, for ducks and geese, a federal duck stamp. So a resident who hunts squirrels, doves and one deer would pay $11.50 plus $8 plus $19.50.

No surcharge applies when you buy online or from a vendor, but phone orders add $1. Every permit and price is listed on MDC's hunting permits page, and the table below sums up the main ones.

Who needs hunter education for a Missouri hunting license?

Anyone born on or after January 1, 1967 must be hunter-education certified to hunt during a Missouri firearms season or to serve as an adult mentor. Hunters 15 and younger may instead hunt with a properly permitted, certified mentor 18 or older. Certifications from other states are accepted.

Missouri gives you two ways to certify. Hunters 11 and older can do a knowledge portion (online, free self-study guide or free classroom session) and then a four-hour in-person skills session with a final exam. Missouri residents 16 and older can instead complete the whole course online with no skills session. Online providers charge their own fee.

Once you are in MDC's system, firearms permit purchases usually verify your certification automatically. Details and course links are on the hunter education page.

• Apprentice Hunter Authorization: $12.50 for residents or nonresidents 16 and older who are not certified.
• Apprentices hunt with firearms only in the immediate presence of a licensed, certified mentor 18 or older.
• The authorization can be bought for two permit years.

Where can you buy a hunting permit in Missouri?

MDC sells permits four ways: online anytime at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, in the free MO Hunting app, from permit vendors around the state, and by phone at 800-392-4115. Online and vendor sales carry no surcharge. Phone orders add a $1 surcharge and take about 10 days to arrive by mail.

The MO Hunting app is worth installing before deer or turkey season. It shows every permit you hold, even ones bought at a store, lets you carry electronic permits, notch them after a harvest and Telecheck from the field. A Conservation Permit Card can also hold most permits on one plastic card and doubles as proof of hunter education.

Federal and state law requires a Social Security number for every permit purchase, even no-cost landowner permits, so have it ready before you start an online order.

1. Confirm hunter education if you were born on or after Jan. 1, 1967, or buy the $12.50 Apprentice Hunter Authorization.
2. Pick a small game permit, then add deer, turkey or migratory bird permits for the hunts you plan.
3. Buy online at mdc.mo.gov/buypermits, in the MO Hunting app, from a permit vendor, or by phone at 800-392-4115.
4. Notch your permit after a deer, turkey, bear or elk harvest and Telecheck it the same way.

Buy a Missouri hunting license on the official site

How do deer, turkey, elk and bear permits work in Missouri?

Deer and turkey permits are bought over the counter, while elk and black bear permits come only through random drawings. There are no deer or turkey exemptions: even hunters who need no small game permit must buy one for these species. Each deer, turkey, bear and elk taken must be Telechecked, which you can do online, in the MO Hunting app or by phone.

Within deer, you choose by method. The Firearms Any-Deer permit is good for one antlered or antlerless deer across the firearms portions, the Archer's permit covers two deer of either sex during archery season, and antlerless permits can be stacked in open counties. Only two antlered deer may be taken across archery and firearms seasons combined.

Elk is resident only. The application period runs May 1 to 31, it costs $10 to apply and the fee is not refundable, and you get one application per year. Drawn hunters 11 and older then buy the $50 elk permit starting July 1. Bear also uses a random drawing with a $10 application fee; MDC publishes dates in its black bear digest each May. See the elk hunting digest for zones and rules.

Bear hunters also call a quota line daily, since a zone can close once its harvest quota is near.

Do kids need a Missouri hunting license?

Kids 15 and younger, resident or nonresident, may hunt without a permit for everything except deer and turkey. For those two species, youth permits for ages 6 to 15 are about half the adult price, such as $9.75 for a Firearms Any-Deer permit or a spring turkey permit, and $11 for the Archer's permit.

Youth who are not hunter-education certified must hunt in the immediate presence of a properly licensed adult 18 or older who is certified or was born before January 1, 1967. Mentors helping youth do not need their own permit unless they hunt too.

Missouri residents 15 and younger may also trap without a permit, and youth do not need the Migratory Bird Hunting Permit. That makes the first seasons for a young hunter cheap: often just a youth deer or turkey permit.

What does a nonresident Missouri hunting license cost?

The nonresident Small Game Hunting Permit is $108.50, and deer and turkey are priced well above resident rates. A nonresident Firearms Any-Deer permit is $360, the nonresident Archer's permit is $360, and spring turkey is $304.50. Nonresidents add a $60 Migratory Bird permit for doves and waterfowl.

For a short bird or rabbit hunt, the Nonresident Daily Small Game Hunting Permit costs $16 per day and can be bought for several days. It covers birds except turkey and mammals except deer, elk and furbearers. Nonresidents who want furbearers need the $221.50 furbearer permit.

Nonresident landowners pay less for deer ($225 for any-deer), and nonresident veterans with qualifying disabilities can buy some resident permits. Planning a trip near the state line? Compare the Arkansas hunting license and the Kansas hunting license, or view every hunting license by state.

What other Missouri hunting license rules should you know?

Most permits are valid from the day you buy them through the last day of February, so this year's run through February 2027. Migratory bird and trapping permits are the exception and run through June 30, 2027.

• Hunter orange: during every portion of firearms deer season, all hunters wear an orange hat plus an orange shirt, vest or coat, visible from all sides. Bear and firearms elk hunters do too. Camo orange does not count, and migratory bird hunters are exempt.
• Landowners: residents owning 5 or more acres, and their households, hunt small game on their land without a permit. With 20 or more contiguous acres they can get no-cost landowner deer and turkey permits.
• Seniors: residents 65 and older hunt everything except deer and turkey without a permit.
• Veterans: those with a 60% or greater service disability, former POWs and Warriors in Transition hunt small game free.
• Military: mobilized Guard and Reserve residents can get a $5.50 small game and fishing permit.
• Lifetime permits (residents only, by order form): Lifetime Small Game Hunting runs from $40.50 at ages 60 to 64 up to $465.50 at ages 16 to 29. See MDC's permit exemptions page for every exemption.