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Utah Unit Finder

Answer six questions and get Utah wildlife management units ranked by habitat fit, 2026 season dates, public land and DWR harvest history.

How the Utah finder works

Utah DWR reports big game harvest by numbered wildlife management unit. This tool scores the 43 mule deer units for the species you pick using DWR annual reports (total deer, elk, pronghorn and moose harvest by unit for 2021–2024, sheep and goat by hunt, bear and cougar by hunt unit for 2021–2025), USGS land-cover and elevation data, and the share of public land such as national forest, BLM and state trust land.

Season fit uses the 2026 Big Game Application Guidebook and DWR's 2026 hunt boundaries: general-season deer units, any-bull and spike elk units, typical windows for limited-entry and once-in-a-lifetime hunts, and year-round cougar hunting with hounds. Birds and waterfowl are ranked by county with the 2026–27 Waterfowl, Upland Game & Turkey Guidebook.

Species covered

  • Mule deer
  • Elk
  • Pronghorn antelope
  • Moose
  • Bighorn sheep
  • Mountain goat
  • Bison
  • Black bear
  • Mountain lion
  • Wild turkey

Upland birds (ranked by county)

  • Ring-necked pheasant
  • Sharp-tailed grouse
  • Sage grouse
  • Gray (Hungarian) partridge
  • Chukar
  • Forest grouse
  • Quail

Waterfowl and migratory birds (ranked by county)

  • Ducks
  • Canada and dark geese
  • Snow and Ross's geese
  • Mourning dove
  • Sandhill crane
  • Tundra swan

About every species on the species page →

Data sources

Utah hunting FAQ

Which Utah units have the most deer harvest?

The Manti, Wasatch Mountains West, Box Elder and Wasatch Mountains East units lead DWR's 2021–2024 total deer harvest. General-season permits are drawn by unit, so check draw odds for each one.

Can I buy a Utah elk tag over the counter?

Yes. General-season any-bull and spike-only elk permits are sold over the counter; limited-entry bull units are drawn. The tool shows which kind of general elk hunt each unit has.

Do I need a permit to hunt cougars in Utah?

No. Since 2023 Utah allows cougar hunting year-round with a hunting license and no annual limit; hounds are allowed except in the restricted pursuit units (Book Cliffs, La Sal and San Juan).

Utah harvest leaders

The wildlife management units with the highest average reported harvest for each species. High totals often reflect large areas and many hunters; the tool above also weighs harvest per square mile, hunter success, habitat and access.

Mule deer (2021–2024 average)

  1. Unit 16B Manti (16B): 2,676 per year, 32% success
  2. Unit 17A Wasatch Mtns, West (17A): 1,594 per year, 20% success
  3. Unit 1 Box Elder (1): 1,511 per year, 38% success
  4. Unit 17BC Wasatch Mtns, East (17BC): 1,322 per year, 30% success
  5. Unit 2 Cache (2): 1,260 per year, 27% success

Elk (2021–2024 average)

  1. Unit 16B Manti (16B): 1,551 per year, 24% success
  2. Unit 6 Chalk Creek (6): 962 per year, 37% success
  3. Unit 4 Morgan-South Rich (4): 906 per year, 40% success
  4. Unit 9A Yellowstone (9A): 816 per year, 18% success
  5. Unit 17BC Wasatch Mtns, East (17BC): 787 per year, 15% success

Pronghorn antelope (2021–2024 average)

  1. Unit 1 Box Elder (1): 421 per year, 80% success
  2. Unit 12 San Rafael (12): 390 per year, 97% success
  3. Unit 20 Southwest Desert (20): 345 per year, 84% success
  4. Unit 19D West Desert, Swasey (19D): 276 per year, 85% success
  5. Unit 21AB Fillmore (21AB): 268 per year, 80% success

Moose (2021–2024 average)

  1. Unit 4 Morgan-South Rich (4): 54 per year, 97% success
  2. Unit 6 Chalk Creek (6): 54 per year, 99% success
  3. Unit 17A Wasatch Mtns, West (17A): 42 per year, 77% success
  4. Unit 8A North Slope, Summit (8A): 40 per year, 95% success
  5. Unit 3 Ogden (3): 40 per year, 100% success

Bighorn sheep (2021–2024 average)

  1. Unit 25C/26 Boulder/Kaiparowits (25C/26): 25 per year
  2. Unit 12 San Rafael (12): 24 per year
  3. Unit 1 Box Elder (1): 20 per year
  4. Unit 21AB Fillmore (21AB): 13 per year
  5. Unit 30 Pine Valley (30): 6 per year

Mountain goat (2021–2024 average)

  1. Unit 22 Beaver (22): 18 per year
  2. Unit 8BC North Slope, Three Corners/West Daggett (8BC): 14 per year
  3. Unit 8A North Slope, Summit (8A): 14 per year
  4. Unit 16A Nebo (16A): 13 per year
  5. Unit 16B Manti (16B): 13 per year

Black bear (2021–2025 average)

  1. Unit 17A Wasatch Mtns, West (17A): 50 per year
  2. Unit 13A La Sal, La Sal Mtns (13A): 50 per year
  3. Unit 16B Manti (16B): 49 per year
  4. Unit 10 Book Cliffs (10): 33 per year
  5. Unit 14B San Juan, Elk Ridge (14B): 27 per year

Mountain lion (2021–2025 average)

  1. Unit 16B Manti (16B): 41 per year
  2. Unit 17A Wasatch Mtns, West (17A): 35 per year
  3. Unit 2 Cache (2): 24 per year
  4. Unit 22 Beaver (22): 22 per year
  5. Unit 30 Pine Valley (30): 21 per year

Ducks (USFWS 10-year average)

  1. Box Elder County: 57,057 per year
  2. Davis County: 48,426 per year
  3. Salt Lake County: 47,777 per year
  4. Weber County: 17,986 per year
  5. Cache County: 12,443 per year

Canada and dark geese (USFWS 10-year average)

  1. Box Elder County: 6,417 per year
  2. Sevier County: 4,344 per year
  3. Davis County: 2,360 per year
  4. Cache County: 2,296 per year
  5. Rich County: 1,696 per year