Pronghorn buck standing in golden evening grass on Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, Wyoming

516-20 Antelope License Draw Odds, Montana

Antelope license, district 516-20, from FWP's 2023 to 2026 drawing statistics. Jump to resident odds or nonresident odds.

Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS Mountain-Prairie), public domain. Photo credits

Fact	Value
Drawing	Antelope license, district 516-20
2026 total quota	550
2026 nonresident cap (FWP's NR quota column)	55
2026 landowner preference cap: resident / nonresident	83 / 55
2026 first-choice applicants: resident / nonresident	1,450 / 202
2026 drawn on first choice: resident / nonresident	482 / 49
2026 first-choice odds: resident / nonresident	33.2% / 24.3%
2026 total successful (all choices and pools)	550

Resident odds by bonus point (2026 drawing)

Share of first-choice resident applicants at each bonus-point level who drew, from FWP's 2026 bonus point report. Each applicant gets one chance plus their points squared, so the draw favors high point holders without a hard cutoff. How Montana bonus points work.

Bonus points	Chances in drawing	1st-choice applicants	Drawn	Odds at this level
0	1	342	41	12.0%
1	2	676	190	28.1%
2	5	318	163	51.3%
3	10	89	65	73.0%
4	17	18	16	88.9%
5	26	3	3	100.0%
6	37	3	3	100.0%
7	50	1	1	100.0%

Resident outlook for 2027

If first-choice demand keeps its 2023 to 2026 trend (+99 applicants a year), about 1,549 residents would apply in 2027; with the same number of first-choice licenses, overall first-choice odds would be about 31%. Average bonus points among first-choice applicants are trending to about 1.3 (+0.09 a year), a measure of point creep in a weighted draw. Confidence: medium.

Landowner preference (residents, 2026): 13 first-choice applicants, 13 drawn.

Nonresident odds by bonus point (2026 drawing)

Share of first-choice nonresident applicants at each bonus-point level who drew, from FWP's 2026 bonus point report. Each applicant gets one chance plus their points squared, so the draw favors high point holders without a hard cutoff. How Montana bonus points work.

Bonus points	Chances in drawing	1st-choice applicants	Drawn	Odds at this level
0	1	17	3	17.6%
1	2	82	6	7.3%
2	5	49	17	34.7%
3	10	38	12	31.6%
4	17	10	6	60.0%
5	26	2	2	100.0%
6	37	4	3	75.0%

Nonresident outlook for 2027

If first-choice demand keeps its 2023 to 2026 trend (+11 applicants a year), about 213 nonresidents would apply in 2027; with the same number of first-choice licenses, overall first-choice odds would be about 23%. Average bonus points among first-choice applicants are trending to about 1.9 (+0.10 a year), a measure of point creep in a weighted draw. Confidence: medium.

Landowner preference (nonresidents, 2026): 6 first-choice applicants, 6 drawn.

First-choice odds by year

First-choice draws over first-choice applicants in the regular drawing (landowner preference excluded).

Draw year	Quota	Res applicants	Res odds	NR applicants	NR odds
2023	700	1,152	54.5%	170	38.2%
2024	700	1,356	46.1%	186	34.4%
2025	700	1,370	45.6%	221	29.4%
2026	550	1,450	33.2%	202	24.3%

Outlook method: see the top of the Montana points explainer and our forecast method. It is a trend line, not a promise.

Notes from TagCanyon

In 2026, 1,450 residents listed this drawing first for a quota of 550, about 2.6 resident applicants per license.
Residents: at 0 bonus points 12% drew; at 4 points (the highest level with at least 5 applicants) 89% drew.
Nonresidents: at 0 bonus points 18% drew; at 4 points (the highest level with at least 5 applicants) 60% drew.

Deadline

Elk B, deer B, antelope and antelope B licenses: FWP's 2026 window ran Mar 1 to Jun 1, 2026 (11:45 p.m. Mountain). FWP has not posted 2027 dates yet; the June 1 deadline has held in recent years. FWP application and drawing dates.

Source: Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP), 2026 Drawing Statistics reports (MyFWP drawing statistics, FWP application and drawing dates). Tables, outlooks and text are TagCanyon's own; FWP does not warrant or endorse them. Not affiliated with FWP. Retrieved Oct 17, 2026.