Payne County, Oklahoma: deer harvest, public land and seasons
Hunters took 2,277 deer in Payne County in 2025-26, 12th of Oklahoma's 77 counties, by ODWC's Big Game Harvest Report (1,160 antlered, 1,117 antlerless). That count leaves out deer taken on wildlife management areas and OLAP land. Payne County's harvest went from 2,128 in 2020-21 to 2,277 in 2025-26 (up 7%). The county holds 78 acres of WMA land in 1 area.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: ODWC's Big Game Harvest Reports, 2020-21 to 2025-26. Public land: ODWC's WMA and OLAP maps, 2026.
Wildlife management areaOLAP walk-in tractCounty lineLake or riverHighway
| Deer harvested, 2025-26 | 2,277 (12th of 77 counties) |
|---|---|
| Antlered and antlerless, 2025-26 | 1,160 and 1,117 |
| Highest of six seasons | 2,454 in 2024-25 |
| Size | 685 square miles of land |
| Wildlife management areas | Keystone WMA |
| OLAP walk-in hunting | None in ODWC's 2026 layer |
| Towns | Stillwater, Cushing, Perkins, Glencoe and Yale |
How many deer are harvested in Payne County?
ODWC's yearly count for Payne County, every deer checked in the county outside wildlife management areas and OLAP land. Payne County's harvest went from 2,128 in 2020-21 to 2,277 in 2025-26 (up 7%).
| Season | Deer harvested | Antlered | Antlerless | Archery | Gun | Muzzleloader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 2,277 | 1,160 | 1,117 | 621 | 1,465 | 191 |
| 2024-25 | 2,454 | 1,195 | 1,259 | 707 | 1,640 | 107 |
| 2023-24 | 2,349 | 1,247 | 1,102 | 566 | 1,599 | 184 |
| 2022-23 | 2,262 | 1,180 | 1,082 | 599 | 1,527 | 136 |
| 2021-22 | 1,962 | 1,126 | 836 | 536 | 1,258 | 168 |
| 2020-21 | 2,128 | 1,044 | 1,084 | 533 | 1,399 | 196 |
Source: ODWC Big Game Harvest Reports (2025-26, 2024-25, 2023-24, 2022-23, 2021-22, 2020-21), Table 1, harvest by county, sex and method. The 2020-21 report labels the columns female and male. Each table was checked against its printed totals.
Payne County deer by method and sex, 2025-26
| Method | Antlerless | Antlered | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Archery | 286 | 335 | 621 |
| Gun | 757 | 708 | 1,465 |
| Muzzleloader | 74 | 117 | 191 |
Where can you hunt public land in Payne County?
Payne County holds 78 acres of ODWC wildlife management area land, 0% of the county:
| Area | Acres in the county | Deer harvested on the whole area, 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|
| Keystone WMA | 78 | 272 |
What is Payne County like?
Payne County covers 685 square miles of land. Its towns include Stillwater, Cushing, Perkins, Glencoe, Yale and Mulhall. Highways: OK 51 (56 miles in the county), OK 33 (41 miles in the county), I-35 (25 miles in the county), US 177 (24 miles in the county) and OK 108 (22 miles in the county). Water: Cushing Lake, Lake Carl Blackwell and Boomer Lake.
How does Payne County compare with its neighbors?
| County | Deer harvested, 2025-26 | Rank of 77 |
|---|---|---|
| Payne | 2,277 | 12 |
| Creek | 2,940 | 5 |
| Lincoln | 2,856 | 7 |
| Logan | 2,276 | 13 |
| Noble | 1,680 | 34 |
| Pawnee | 2,163 | 17 |
When are Oklahoma's 2026 deer seasons?
Deer seasons are statewide; antlerless days and limits are set by zone, and ODWC draws its antlerless zones along highways, so check ODWC's antlerless zone map for Payne County. The combined season limit is six deer, no more than two antlered.
| Season | 2026-27 dates |
|---|---|
| Deer archery | Oct. 1, 2026 to Jan. 15, 2027 |
| Youth deer gun | Oct. 16-18, 2026 |
| Deer muzzleloader | Oct. 24 to Nov. 1, 2026 |
| Deer gun | Nov. 21 to Dec. 6, 2026 |
| Holiday antlerless deer gun | Dec. 18-31, 2026 |
Source: ODWC 2026-27 deer seasons. Wildlife management areas can close or shorten a season; each WMA's page lists its own.
Questions hunters ask
How many deer are harvested in Payne County, Oklahoma?
ODWC counts 2,277 deer taken in Payne County in 2025-26, leaving out WMA and OLAP land. Over the six seasons from 2020-21 the county ranged from 1,962 (2021-22) to 2,454 (2024-25).
Is there public hunting land in Payne County?
Yes: Keystone WMA (78 acres in the county).
When is deer gun season in Payne County in 2026?
Statewide: Nov. 21 to Dec. 6, 2026, with muzzleloader Oct. 24 to Nov. 1 and archery Oct. 1, 2026 to Jan. 15, 2027. How many antlerless deer you may take depends on the antlerless zone, which ODWC maps by highways rather than county lines. WMAs set their own rules.
Which method takes the most deer in Payne County?
In 2025-26: gun 1,465, archery 621, muzzleloader 191, by ODWC's table.
Get a Oklahoma hunt plan when they open
Hunt plans for Oklahoma are coming. Join the list and you'll hear first. The first 50 hunters in each new state get their plan free.
Until then, the free FilledTag app for iPhone has a map that works in every state, Oklahoma included.
Where these numbers come from
- Harvest by county: ODWC Big Game Harvest Reports, 2025-26, 2024-25, 2023-24, 2022-23, 2021-22, 2020-21. The 2023-24 and 2020-21 tables are pictures, read by OCR and kept only where they match ODWC's printed totals.
- Wildlife management areas: ODWC Public WMA Boundaries. OLAP: ODWC OLAP layer. Acres measured by FilledTag.
- Seasons: ODWC 2026-27 hunting regulations. County, towns and highways: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024.
FilledTag is not part of the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. Nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Oklahoma hunting Creek County Lincoln County Logan County Noble County Pawnee County