COLUMBUS – The Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife is reporting that hunters across Ohio have checked 68,456 white-tailed deer through Sunday, Nov. 8, which includes the first seven weekends of bowhunting.
Ohio’s top 10 counties for deer harvested during the first seven weeks of the 2026 deer season include: Coshocton (2,807), Tuscarawas (2,262), Ashtabula (2,126), Holmes (2,075), Trumbull (2,015), Knox (1,920) Muskingum (1,839), Licking (1,736), Carroll (1,692), and Columbiana (1,667).
Delaware County hunters are slightly ahead of the pace set over the last three years. This year Delaware County bowhunters have bagged 637 so far, above the three-year average of 635.
The 2026-27 statewide archery season began on Saturday, Sept. 26 and continues through Sunday, Feb. 7, 2027.
Deer taken this year during the archery season include 36,984 antlered deer and 31,472 antlerless deer, a category which includes does and button bucks.
The average bow harvest through the first two weekends of November over the last three years is 66,698 deer. Last year, hunters reported 64,427 deer taken over the same period.
So far this season, the best day for bowhunters was Saturday, Nov. 7, when hunters checked 5,609 deer. Other successful dates for hunters were Sunday, Nov. 8 (4,411 deer taken), Saturday, Sept. 26 (3,979), Saturday, Oct. 31 (3,494), and Friday, Nov. 6 (3,241).
During the 2025-26 deer season, 107,783 of the 232,142 deer checked were taken with a bow. In each of the last three seasons, archery harvest has surpassed 100,000 deer, indicating that bowhunting continues to rise in popularity. The 2025-26 archery total included 77,938 deer taken with a crossbow and 29,845 with a vertical bow.
Bowhunting is available on both public and private land. Archers have additional opportunities to hunt private land through the Ohio Landowner-Hunter Access Partnership (OLHAP), which incentivizes landowners to open their property to hunters. A list of available properties and instructions for obtaining access, available by permit only, are available at wildohio.gov.
Ohio offers many other opportunities for deer hunters to spend time in the field in the coming weeks. Young hunters can use firearms during the youth gun season Saturday, Nov. 21 and Sunday, Nov. 22.
A seven-day gun season opens statewide to all hunters on Monday, Nov. 30, and continues through Sunday, Dec. 6. An additional gun weekend occurs Saturday, Dec. 19 and Sunday, Dec. 20. The muzzleloader hunting season will be Saturday, Jan. 2 through Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2027. Find complete details in the 2026-27 Hunting and Trapping Regulations.
Licensing and Game Check Information
Deer hunters are required to purchase a hunting license and deer permit, unless exempted.
A one-year resident hunting license costs $19 and is valid through Feb. 28, 2027. Either-sex deer permits, $31.20 for resident adults, are available statewide through Feb. 7, 2027, and can be used on antlered and antlerless deer.
Deer management permits, available for $15, can be used on private land and public hunting areas throughout the season for antlerless deer. Licenses can be purchased at HuntFishOH.gov, on the HuntFish OH mobile app, or at a license sales agent.
The Division of Wildlife has implemented a new licensing system that requires a login with a unique email address to purchase online. Hunters and anglers are encouraged to purchase products early to avoid confusion.
To improve accuracy in matching an online account, it is recommended to use an individual’s customer ID, which may be found on previous licenses.
Here are further tips to navigate the new online system.
- When submitting game check, be sure to double-check the harvest is submitted under the correct hunter’s account.
- Multiple options are available to purchase a license and report a harvest, including online, the HuntFish OH mobile app, a license agent, and operator assist (additional fees apply).
- Review FAQs for additional tips and help in navigating the new site.
Successful deer hunters can check their game using the HuntFish OH mobile app, available for free in the Android and Apple app stores. Users can also explore public hunting areas, purchase hunting licenses or deer permits, view county bag limits, and much more.
Beyond the app, hunters can check game by visiting HuntFishOH.gov, calling 1-877-TAG-IT-OH (1-877-824-4864), visiting a license sales agent, or calling 1-866-703-1298 (landowner operator-assisted; fees apply).
Field to Food Bank Program
The Division of Wildlife’s Field to Food Bank program is accepting deer donations on select dates during the hunting season.
Hunters can drop off donations at designated locations. Division of Wildlife staff then transport donated deer to the Ohio Penal Industries’ meat processing facility at Pickaway Correctional Institution. Processed and packaged venison is distributed to regional food banks in coordination with the Ohio Association of Foodbanks.
Whole, field-dressed deer are accepted at the donation locations. Donated deer are required to be properly tagged and game-checked, and hunters are required to have a license and deer permit before heading into the field, unless exempted. All donated deer count toward county and statewide bag limits.
Donation opportunities continue to be added throughout the season. Check donation dates and nearby locations at ohiodnr.gov/DonateVenison. Monetary donations are also accepted to help cover processing and packing costs.
County by county totals
An Ohio county list of all white-tailed deer checked by bowhunters through Sunday, Nov. 8 is shown below. The first number following the county’s name shows the harvest numbers for 2026, and the three-year average of deer taken through the corresponding date from 2023 to 2025 is in parentheses.
A three-year average provides a better overall comparison to this year’s numbers, eliminating year-to-year variation because of weather, misaligned season dates, and other unavoidable factors. Numbers below are raw data and subject to change.
Adams: 1,182 (1,118); Allen: 415 (500); Ashland: 1,402 (1,350); Ashtabula: 2,126 (1,959); Athens: 457 (663); Auglaize: 393 (410); Belmont: 638 (878); Brown: 775 (751); Butler: 514 (481); Carroll: 1,692 (1,467); Champaign: 533 (542); Clark: 339 (323); Clermont: 860 (847); Clinton: 274 (301); Columbiana: 1,667 (1,389); Coshocton: 2,807 (2,483); Crawford: 413 (431); Cuyahoga: 441 (421); Darke: 377 (387); Defiance: 436 (458); Delaware: 637 (635); Erie: 408 (373); Fairfield: 645 (641); Fayette: 154 (145); Franklin: 222 (249); Fulton: 383 (333); Gallia: 752 (718); Geauga: 1,100 (1,085); Greene: 372 (329); Guernsey: 1,329 (1,411); Hamilton: 397 (518); Hancock: 554 (578); Hardin: 445 (383); Harrison: 1,335 (1,333); Henry: 257 (248); Highland: 879 (849); Hocking: 730 (684); Holmes: 2,075 (1,879); Huron: 800 (788); Jackson: 852 (789); Jefferson: 971 (937); Knox: 1,920 (1,836); Lake: 510 (484); Lawrence: 513 (473); Licking: 1,736 (1,735); Logan: 742 (754); Lorain: 833 (881); Lucas: 340 (395); Madison: 221 (229); Mahoning: 1,038 (927); Marion: 310 (284); Medina: 1,046 (982); Meigs: 528 (696); Mercer: 377 (398); Miami: 331 (372); Monroe: 513 (554); Montgomery: 341 (337); Morgan: 461 (668); Morrow: 783 (698); Muskingum: 1,839 (1,640); Noble: 697 (828); Ottawa: 255 (238); Paulding: 319 (322); Perry: 776 (730); Pickaway: 293 (280); Pike: 666 (618); Portage: 1,150 (1,036); Preble: 399 (398); Putnam: 409 (398); Richland: 1,286 (1,448); Ross: 826 (849); Sandusky: 472 (459); Scioto: 892 (719); Seneca: 761 (726); Shelby: 419 (424); Stark: 1,404 (1,317); Summit: 875 (789); Trumbull: 2,015 (1,788); Tuscarawas: 2,262 (2,099); Union: 403 (410); Van Wert: 239 (252); Vinton: 534 (553); Warren: 463 (409); Washington: 467 (642); Wayne: 1,134 (1,073); Williams: 769 (734); Wood: 393 (373); Wyandot: 458 (379).
2026 total: 68,456.
3-year average total: 66,698.
