Minnesota Deer Season 2026-27: Archery & Gun Dates

Q: When does deer season open in Minnesota in 2026-27?

It depends which season you mean, which is why this page splits them. Deer - Archery: September 19, 2026 to December 31, 2026. Deer - Firearm: November 7, 2026 to November 29, 2026. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources publishes both, and the full zone tables on this page were read from its own page on September 2, 2026.

Q: When is deer - firearm season in Minnesota?

November 7, 2026 to November 29, 2026, varying by zone across 4 rows in the agency table. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources calls it the Deer - Firearm season; the exact wording matters because states name the same thing differently, and this page keeps the agency's own name for it.

Q: Does Minnesota have a separate muzzleloader or youth deer season?

Deer - Muzzleloader: November 28, 2026 to December 13, 2026. Deer - Youth: October 15, 2026 to October 18, 2026. Both were read from the same agency source as the archery and firearms windows.

Q: Which deer zone am I in, in Minnesota?

Minnesota sets different dates by zone, and the boundaries are the agency's own, drawn along highways, rivers and county fragments, and they can differ between weapon seasons inside the same state. Your zone is determined from the agency's own map: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources publishes the official zone map and boundary descriptions, linked from this page.

Q: Where are the bag limits, antler restrictions and license rules for Minnesota?

At Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, whose regulations page is linked on this page. Those rules are legally binding, change annually and vary by zone and by land ownership. This page carries the season windows themselves, with source and read date attached.

Q: Can these Minnesota deer dates change?

Yes. Agencies amend proclamations, add or drop zones, and occasionally correct their own published tables mid season. This page covers the 2026-27 season year with data as of September 2, 2026, says so in the copy, and links the exact Minnesota Department of Natural Resources page it read on September 2, 2026. Treat the agency page as the final word on the morning you hunt.

This page covers the 2026-27 season year. Dates were read from the agency sources linked below, last checked September 2, 2026. Seasons change annually and agencies correct their own pages; confirm against the linked agency page before you hunt.

September 19, 2026 to December 31, 2026

Deer - Archery

published

November 7, 2026 to November 29, 2026

Deer - Firearm

published

November 28, 2026 to December 13, 2026

Deer - Muzzleloader

published

4 zone rows

Zone structure

as the agency draws it

The four questions in one

Minnesota deer seasons, 2026-27

“When does deer season open” is four questions wearing one coat. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources dates white-tailed deer seasons separately by weapon, so each one is below under the agency’s own name for it, with the zone rows exactly as the agency lists them.

Deer - Archery

published

Deer - Archery is OPEN now, through December 31, 2026.

Minnesota deer - archery, as published by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	September 19, 2026	December 31, 2026

Dates read from Hunting and Trapping Seasons, Minnesota DNR, accessed 2026-09-02.

One continuous statewide archery season from mid September to the end of the year, running through and past the firearms and muzzleloader windows.

Deer - Firearm

published

Deer - Firearm opens in 19 days, on November 7, 2026 (100 Series permit areas (Season A)).

Minnesota deer - firearm, as published by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
100 Series permit areas (Season A)	November 7, 2026	November 22, 2026
200 and 300 Series permit areas (Season A)	November 7, 2026	November 15, 2026
300 Series permit areas (Season B)	November 21, 2026	November 29, 2026	The late southeast season
Metro deer management zone 601	November 7, 2026	November 29, 2026	Listed on the DNR deer page

Dates read from Hunting and Trapping Seasons, Minnesota DNR, accessed 2026-09-02.

Minnesota runs its firearms season by permit area series rather than statewide: the 100 Series north woods areas get the long window, the 200 and 300 Series a shorter one, and the 300 Series southeast areas a second late season. Which series your permit area falls in is on the DNR permit area map.

Deer - Muzzleloader

published

Deer - Muzzleloader opens in 40 days, on November 28, 2026.

Minnesota deer - muzzleloader, as published by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	November 28, 2026	December 13, 2026

Dates read from Hunting and Trapping Seasons, Minnesota DNR, accessed 2026-09-02.

A sixteen day statewide muzzleloader season beginning the Saturday after the firearms opener weekends close.

Deer - Youth

published

Deer - Youth has closed for the season year; the last segment ended October 18, 2026.

Minnesota deer - youth, as published by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Statewide	October 15, 2026	October 18, 2026

Dates read from Hunting and Trapping Seasons, Minnesota DNR, accessed 2026-09-02.

A four day statewide youth season in mid October, running the same days as the early antlerless season.

For which days to sit, the Minnesota deer movement forecast rates the next 7 days Slow to Prime from the weather and first light.

Deer - Archery | Statewide | 09/19/26 - 12/31/26

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, read September 2, 2026. Read it at the source

The rest of the calendar

Other Minnesota deer seasons the agency names

Beyond the four main windows, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources dates 2 further seasons for deer. They are reproduced here under the agency’s own names, because a hunter reading a calendar needs to know which window a tag actually covers.

Deer - Early Antlerless

published

Deer - Early Antlerless has closed for the season year; the last segment ended October 18, 2026.

Minnesota deer - early antlerless, as published by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
Designated permit areas	October 15, 2026	October 18, 2026	Open areas are the DNR's designation

Dates read from Hunting and Trapping Seasons, Minnesota DNR, accessed 2026-09-02.

Runs the same four days as the youth season, in the permit areas the DNR opens to it.

Late CWD season

published

Late CWD season opens in 60 days, on December 18, 2026 (CWD management areas).

Minnesota late cwd season, as published by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Zone	Opens	Closes	Notes
CWD management areas	December 18, 2026	December 20, 2026	Listed on the DNR deer page

Dates read from Hunting and Trapping Seasons, Minnesota DNR, accessed 2026-09-02.

A three day December season in the DNR's chronic wasting disease management areas.

Zones

Minnesota deer zones

Minnesota does not have a deer season. It has 4 of them, and the boundaries between them were drawn by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources along highways, rivers and county fragments rather than anything you can see from a stand. In several states those boundaries are not even the same from one weapon season to the next.

This page publishes the agency’s zone names and links the agency’s own zone map, which is where a hunter’s zone is determined. A wrong zone answer is a wrong season date.

Alert white-tailed buck standing in bare late fall brush at dusk — A buck on the move in bare November brush at Karl E. Mundt National Wildlife Refuge, South Dakota. Photo: Liz Julian/USFWS. “White-tailed Deer, Karl E. Mundt National Wildlife Refuge, South Dakota” — Liz Julian / USFWS Mountain Prairie — Public domain

Rules

Minnesota deer hunting regulations

Season windows are carried here with their source and read date attached. Everything else a hunter is bound by is set by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and its regulations page is linked below.

Current Minnesota regulations

Harvest limits, antler restrictions, permitted arms, shooting hours, tagging and reporting, and license and permit requirements for Minnesota are set by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, are legally binding and change annually. Its current regulations page is linked here.

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources: current regulations

Two hunters in blaze orange and camouflage beside a wheelchair at the edge of bare winter woods, one helping the other with gear — Getting ready at the edge of the winter woods on a mobility assisted deer hunt. Many states date a season specifically for hunters with disabilities, and those windows are on the state pages. Photo: U.S. Marine Corps. “USMC-11410” — U.S. Marine Corps (official photo, marines.mil) — Public domain

Deer season dates in other states

Minnesota deer movement forecastThe next 7 days rated Slow to Prime for deer movement, from the forecast and first light.Minnesota deer rutThe biology beside the calendar: when deer actually breed here, from the agency conception studies. Dates are this page; the rut is that one.Minnesota turkey seasonSpring and fall wild turkey windows for 2026-27, under the same sourcing rules.Minnesota duck seasonDuck and goose season dates by zone and flyway, read from the same agency.Minnesota fall foliagePeak color and the archery weeks overlap. Plan the same trip.

Minnesota deer season questions

When does deer season open in Minnesota in 2026-27?

When is deer - firearm season in Minnesota?

Does Minnesota have a separate muzzleloader or youth deer season?

Which deer zone am I in, in Minnesota?

Where are the bag limits, antler restrictions and license rules for Minnesota?

Can these Minnesota deer dates change?

Buck with antlers in velvet standing in tall summer grass in golden light — A buck still in velvet in late summer. The earliest archery openers land within weeks of antlers hardening. “White-tailed Deer Buck in Velvet (48804848567)” — USFWS Mountain Prairie — Public domain

This page covers the 2026-27 season year with data as of September 2, 2026. Every season window is republished from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources page linked beside it, read on September 2, 2026; windows the agency had not yet published are labelled not yet published. Harvest limits, antler restrictions, permitted arms, shooting hours and license rules are set by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, whose page is the final word on the day you hunt. See also the national deer season guide and the Minnesota rut timing page.