Let’s preface this: We should really call this the 7 toughest states to harvest a whitetail. This has nothing to do with tough terrain, strict regulations, trophy-size bucks or any other arbitrary quantification. For this exercise, we are simply going by how many hunters are trying each year … and how many are actually successful. We think the list will open a few eyes and even cause some debate.

Without further ado, here’s our list (in no particular order) for the hardest states to hunt (and get) a deer:

7. Florida

This might sound easy enough, as most people don’t think of Florida as a deer hunting rich state. It actually is. Some of the best hunting occurs on private landholdings, but therein lies the key: Those are few even though the state boasts some incredible rural countryside. When it comes to whitetails, Florida’s problems aren’t as bad as some of the other states on this list. However, a limited whitetail population and modest overall harvest (about 75,000 deer per year) makes it slim pickings for the 180,000 (+/-) whitetail fanatics in the Sunshine State.

6. New Jersey

Another one that’s probably not surprising for whitetail fanatics. We have followed the ups and downs of this tiny (almost 7X smaller than Iowa via land mass) yet densely populated (9.3 million people in NJ vs 3 million in Iowa) for years. You would think those facts alone would equal barely any deer or hunters. Well, yes and no. The state still attracts more than 80,000 hunters to the woods each year. In 2022, 69,643 bought gun-hunting licenses while 40,133 bought archery licenses. Only problem: There’s not a lot of deer. The state’s overall herd is estimated at just 112,000 whitetails. Gun-hunters only take home about 13,000 deer a year. Bowhunters take more, but the grim prospects of a deerless gun season almost every single year puts the state on our list.

5. Maine

These next two entries will shock anyone who doesn’t live on the East Coast. Maine? No way! It’s the epitome of the great outdoors, right? Again, yes and no. The state’s vast woodlands are breathtaking and filled with critters. Problem is, most of those critters are not white-tailed deer. The state does have a whitetail population of some 200,000 head, but that’s spread across 35,000 square miles. Oof. Each year, the annual hunt attracts 175,000 gun-hunters and about 35,000 bowhunters, but the success rate is very low (just 22% for gun-hunters). If you’re into nostalgia and hunting “the way it was back then,” then Maine might be #1, but when it comes to simply going out and getting a deer, it is awfully tough.

4. Vermont

We put Vermont on the list because one can’t talk about the Northeast without mentioning the land of the Benoits. Larry Benoit might have been the greatest deer hunter in America in 1970, and for good reason: It was mighty damn hard to shoot a deer in the state of Vermont back then! And, guess what? It still is today! Nearly 110,000 hunters roam the state’s hunting grounds each year, but only 15% take home a deer. That’s one of the lowest percentages in North America. Bowhunting, again, is a bit easier, as Vermont’s 20,000 archers annually take home just shy of 6,000 deer.

3. Oregon

The final three slots include three sleepers. Not too much is known about Oregon whitetail hunting because whitetails are a very minor component of the state’s annual harvest. Most of the emphasis is on a very solid mule deer population. But, if we are just looking at whitetail opportunities, Oregon is definitely one of the hardest states to punch a tag. In 2022, the state’s 11,700 gun-hunters brought home just 1,168 deer (9.9%), and only 70 bowhunters were successful (not a typo!)

2. North Dakota

The Peace Garden State is a wildlife mecca, isn’t it? Most certainly, but not when it comes to whitetail hunting opportunities. Despite being home to nearly 2 million acres of forested land, North Dakota has bleak whitetail hunting. The state’s 110,000 whitetail hunters only bring home about 30,000 deer each year. If you’re a bowhunter and not hunting with an outfitter, the odds are very low. Only 6,518 deer were tagged by archers last year. Gun-hunting success rate was also less than 23%.

1. Montana

Say it ain’t so! All those years of watching Realtree Outdoors Monster Bucks videos has us all believing Montana is THE place to fill your tag, right? Well, maybe if you’re in the right place (guided hunt). Truth be told, Montana is one mighty hard place to fill a whitetail tag. The state boasts nearly 150,000 deer hunters, yet only 45,000 (+/-) of them are successful. True, 30% is way better than some of the other states on this list, but we place the Big Sky State on the list because the relatively low success rate is something that any whitetail nut would not expect to see when crunching the numbers.

In all fairness, states like New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut could all have been easily added to the list, but we didn’t think it was fair to pick on ALL of the Northeast states. Those smaller, highly populated states are no-brainers when it comes to limited opportunities for the masses.

So, there you have it. Do you agree, disagree, or believe we left some states off the list that should be on it? Please add your comments to the social media page where you read this article, and we will include your views during updates to this post!