They say that 10% of elk hunters kill 90% of the elk that are harvested every year. Well, that would depend on the state. Also, it might be a little more useful to look closer at what these successful hunters have in common.

Your chances of killing an elk are based on past success rates. The state that comes to the top of the list is Wyoming with a 44% success rate. More successful hunters tend to have more experience, but that doesn’t mean a newbie or a non-resident can’t bump into a big one.

There are many things that go into killing an elk. It is definitely no walk in the park, regardless of where you are hunting. And while we all want to go out and kill an elk with every tag we get, many of us know all too well that this isn’t always the case.

But what are the chances, and how do you increase them?

Let’s first take a look at which states have the best odds of success thanks to their elk numbers and the tags they give out. From there, we will dive into what actually affects your chances of successfully killing an elk while you are out hunting.

By doing your homework and then fully preparing before a hunt, you can tip the odds to be better in your favor and become one of the 10% of people that tag out every year!

A Look at Success Rates By State

Every state is going to be different when it comes to success rates. And even in each state, success will vary from unit to unit. There are many factors that will affect this (which we will go into detail later), but there are definitely a few states that tend to stand above the rest when it comes to killing elk.

If you were to just look at the most elk killed every year, then states like Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming would come out on top every year. But this does not tell the whole story. While the most elk are killed in Colorado, it also has the largest population of elk and the most amount of hunters.

This is why it’s important to look at the success rates of the actual hunts. When you do that, Colorado actually ranks number 5 overall.

To get the success rate of any given hunt, you must take the total number of animals killed and compare it to the number of tags given out. So if a particular unit gives out 100 bull elk tags and only 10 animals are killed, the success rate of that hunt is 10%.

This same logic can be applied to an entire state as a whole in order to give you a better idea of where you stand the best chance of filling an elk tag.

With that being said, let’s take a look at the top five states that have the highest success rates when it comes to their elk tags! Just remember, these success rates can and do fluctuate year to year depending on elk numbers, tags given, weather conditions, etc.

5. Colorado

As we previously mentioned, Colorado comes in at number 5. The average success rate is around 19% in any given year. This state is home to the largest elk herds in the world, and tags are generally easy to come by.

In fact, elk tags can be bought over the counter in many areas across the state. But it’s because of the extremely high hunting pressure that this state is not higher up on the list, as elk can be hard to find once there are thousands of hunters in the field.

But with so many elk and tags available, it’s no surprise to see Colorado make the top five list of highest success rate areas.

4. Idaho

Idaho is similar to Colorado in that its home to large numbers of elk and tags are easy to acquire. The average success rate is around 20%.

Many areas of the state have over-the-counter tags, and the season dates allow for a lot of hunting to be done. One of the only reasons that Idaho is not at the top of the list is that the terrain can be extremely difficult to hunt. With steep mountains and thick forests, the elk are plentiful but can be harder to kill than the next states on our list.

3. Montana

Next on the list is Montana. It’s really no surprise to see Montana this high in the rankings, considering just how large the state is and how many elk there are. The average success rate hovers around 23% for elk hunters, and tags are plentiful and easy to draw.

The terrain is also much more conducive to successful elk hunting, especially compared to Colorado or Idaho. Combine large herds of elk and large tracts of public land to hunt and you get a higher-than-normal success rate.

2. Utah

Utah is different from every other state in the top five. It does not have nearly the same amount of elk as the other states listed here, but it has the highest trophy quality out of all of them.

They do this by severely limiting the number of tags that they give out. With so few tags, it can often be hard to draw one. But when you do, you are in for the hunt of a lifetime. Few other hunters mean you are hunting unpressured elk and can take your time to tag out. The average success rate hovers around 25%.

1. Wyoming

Wyoming is the number one state that you need to visit if the average success rate is important to you. This state has an average success rate of 42.9%. Wyoming has it all when it comes to elk hunting to achieve this.

Giant elk herds, plenty of public land and terrain types to hunt, plentiful tags, and liberal hunting seasons all combine to provide one of the best chances to harvest an elk on any given hunt in the state.

Factors That Affect Success Rate

Just because you are hunting a state or area that has high success rates, doesn’t necessarily mean you are guaranteed to tag out on an elk.

So what goes into a success rate, and how can you use this to your advantage? Here are a few different factors that will all affect the rate of success in an area and how you can use them to increase your own odds.

Elk Numbers

One of the most important things to consider before choosing an area to hunt is the elk population. In general, the more elk that are living there, the more opportunities to harvest one. After all, you can’t kill an elk if you can’t find one.

It’s also important to consider other animal populations in the area as well. For example, an area that is known for having lots of wolves might not have as many elk as another location where there are no wolves.

Experience: New Hunters Vs Veteran Hunters

Easily one of the biggest deciding factors of who kills an elk and who doesn’t is experience. Brand new hunters who have never elk hunted before will have significantly lower chances of killing an elk than a veteran hunter who has years of experience behind them.

These veteran hunters know what type of terrain to find the elk in, what their habits will be, and how to best approach them for a shot opportunity.

The only way to increase your experience is to get out elk hunting as much as possible. Use every hunt as a learning experience and it will begin to increase your chances of killing an elk in the future.

Season Dates

Many hunters don’t realize that season dates have a giant impact on the quality and success rate of a hunt. The time of year that you are hunting elk will affect just how easy it is to successfully harvest an elk.

For example, an elk hunt during the middle of September will usually have much higher rates of success when compared to a late-season tag in the snow simply because of the elk’s habits and location during those times of the year.

That’s not to say that you can’t be successful during any season, but depending on the location, it can be a major factor.

On top of the time of year, the length of the season will affect your odds of success. For example, Wyoming has very long seasons, sometimes lasting for months. This gives you much more hunting time and increases your chances of killing an elk.

On the other hand, you have states like Arizona whose seasons only last a week. This gives you much less hunting time and therefore drops the chances of a successful hunt.

Location Quality

We touched on this briefly, but every area will have a different quality to it that will affect success rates.

Some locations are very open and flat, making them easier to hunt than others that are steep and thick. As you can imagine, the terrain that is easier to hike and glass will make it easier to spot and kill elk. Another type of terrain characteristic that is important is the amount of feed and water.

Elk are large animals and need plenty of both. A quality elk hunting location will have a good amount of feed and some nearby water to support a big herd. Look for these types of quality locations and you are sure to increase your success rates!

How to Increase Your Chances of Killing an Elk

You’ve picked out the perfect location to hunt elk and acquired a tag, so now what? There are still more things that you can do beforehand that will tip the odds in your favor.

The better prepared you are before an elk hunt, the higher your chances of killing an elk, regardless of where you will be hunting. A few of these things include:

Physical Fitness

Elk hunting is one of the most physically depending hunts on the planet. Elk live in some very remote and rugged country, and it can be a chore just getting them. Expect to hike many miles per day, regardless of the type of terrain or season that you are hunting.

The elk hunters who are in good physical shape will always have better success than those who aren’t, so make sure you are keeping up with your physical fitness. You don’t need to run a marathon every day, but something as simple as staying more active by walking or riding a bike can pay dividends in the elk woods.

Days in the Field

The more days you put into the hunt, the higher your odds of success. But this doesn’t just apply to the actual hunt. Preseason scouting is another essential element to a successful elk hunter.

The more days that you put into the field before and during the elk hunt, the more likely you are to know where the elk are and when they will be there. This will put you ahead of the other elk hunters, and allow you to punch your tag when others can’t.

Practice

Whether you are hunting with a rifle or a bow, you need to practice with your weapon. The worst thing in the world is to put in all the work to find and get close to the elk and then miss your shot at the most crucial moment.

Practice with your weapon of choice, as well as with your hunting equipment. Break in your hiking boots by going on hikes before the hunt, and use your optics to learn how everything works. Preparation beforehand will put more elk in your path when it counts.

Final Thoughts

So what are the actual chances of killing an elk? Some people will say it’s around 10%, but the truth is it all really depends. Some places experience success rates as low as 2%, while others have them as high as 75%.

With so many different factors that go into elk hunting, it is almost impossible to determine your chances of killing an elk before a hunt. But luckily there is plenty that you can do to increase your odds and become one of the elk hunters that consistently fill their tags every time they have one!

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(This article was originally published on Pintreesandsolitude.com. If it is now published on any other site, it was done without permission from the copyright owner.)

What Are The Chances of Killing An Elk? Top 5 States