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Tennessee · 2026-27 season year

Tennessee Deer Season 2026-27

Archery: September 26, 2026 to November 6, 2026. Gun/Muzzleloader/Archery: November 21, 2026 to January 3, 2027. Every date below was read from Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency’s own published page, linked beside it, on September 2, 2026.

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 26, 2026 to November 6, 2026
Archery
published
November 21, 2026 to January 3, 2027
Gun/Muzzleloader/Archery
published
November 7, 2026 to November 20, 2026
Muzzleloader/Archery
published
Statewide
Zone structure
as the agency draws it
The four questions in one

Tennessee deer seasons, 2026-27

“When does deer season open” is four questions wearing one coat. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency 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.

Archery

published

Archery is OPEN now, through October 30, 2026.

Tennessee archery, as published by Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
Statewide (segment 1)September 26, 2026October 30, 2026Two segments around the Halloween break
Statewide (segment 2)November 2, 2026November 6, 2026

Dates read from Deer Season Dates, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, accessed 2026-09-02.

Tennessee's archery season runs in two segments before the muzzleloader window opens. TWRA also dates a short August archery season on private lands and select Unit 1 wildlife management areas; that is under other seasons.

Gun/Muzzleloader/Archery

published

Gun/Muzzleloader/Archery opens in 33 days, on November 21, 2026.

Tennessee gun/muzzleloader/archery, as published by Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideNovember 21, 2026January 3, 2027

Dates read from Deer Season Dates, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, accessed 2026-09-02.

TWRA names its general season by the equipment classes it covers rather than calling it a gun season. It runs six weeks from late November into the new year. Tennessee's Units 1 through 6 shape what may be taken rather than when, so the dates are statewide.

Muzzleloader/Archery

published

Muzzleloader/Archery opens in 19 days, on November 7, 2026.

Tennessee muzzleloader/archery, as published by Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
StatewideNovember 7, 2026November 20, 2026

Dates read from Deer Season Dates, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, accessed 2026-09-02.

A two week statewide window between the archery segments and the general season.

Young Sportsman

published

Young Sportsman opens in 12 days, on October 31, 2026.

Tennessee young sportsman, as published by Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
Statewide (segment 1)October 31, 2026November 1, 2026Two weekends
Statewide (segment 2)January 9, 2027January 10, 2027

Dates read from Deer Season Dates, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, accessed 2026-09-02.

TWRA runs the young sportsman season on two weekends, one between the archery segments and one after the general season closes.

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

Gun/Muzzleloader/Archery (G/M/A) | Nov. 21, 2026 - Jan. 3, 2027
Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, read September 2, 2026. Read it at the source
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The rest of the calendar

Other Tennessee deer seasons the agency names

Beyond the four main windows, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency dates one further season 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.

August (A)

published

August (A) has closed for the season year; the last segment ended August 30, 2026.

Tennessee august (a), as published by Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
ZoneOpensClosesNotes
Private lands and select Unit 1 wildlife management areasAugust 28, 2026August 30, 2026Not available on management areas in other units

Dates read from Deer Season Dates, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, accessed 2026-09-02.

A three day late August archery season in west Tennessee, the earliest deer window the agency dates.

Zones

One calendar, one state

Tennessee is one of the states that keeps it simple: Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency publishes these windows as listed above rather than splitting the state into zones with different openers. That makes the calendar easy and the sourcing no less important, because the dates still change every year.

Which unit or county you hunt can still change what you may take, even where it does not change when the season runs. That is the agency’s to tell you, and its regulations page is linked below.

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

Tennessee 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 Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, and its regulations page is linked below.

Current Tennessee regulations

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

Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency: 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

Tennessee deer movement forecastThe next 7 days rated Slow to Prime for deer movement, from the forecast and first light.Tennessee 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.Tennessee turkey seasonSpring and fall wild turkey windows for 2026-27, under the same sourcing rules.Tennessee duck seasonDuck and goose season dates by zone and flyway, read from the same agency.Tennessee fall foliagePeak color and the archery weeks overlap. Plan the same trip.

Tennessee deer season questions

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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 Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency 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 Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, whose page is the final word on the day you hunt. See also the national deer season guide and the Tennessee rut timing page.