Resident hunters wanting to purchase a general season elk tag in a capped zone will need to keep two dates in mind in July.

On Monday, July 12, all resident capped elk zone tags, except for the Sawtooth Zone, go on sale at 10 a.m. (MDT) at Fish and Game offices, license vendors, with a credit card on Fish and Game's online vendor, or by calling (800) 554-8685.

On Wednesday, July 14, resident Sawtooth Zone A and B elk tags go on sale, with half of the tags sold at Fish and Game offices and license vendors-only starting at 10 a.m. (MDT). The remaining half of the resident Sawtooth tags will go on sale online-only at 1 p.m. (MDT).

Resident hunters are reminded that those who applied for a controlled elk hunt, regardless of whether they drew or not, must wait five days after tags become available to purchase a capped elk zone tag. The waiting period went into effect in 2020.

Capped zone tags are sold in limited numbers on a first-come, first-served basis. Demand for these tags is high, and many are expected to sell fast. 

The sale applies only to these elk tags with numbers available:

• Bear River Zone – B Tag - 441
• Big Desert Zone – B Tag - 495
• Diamond Creek Zone – A Tag - 1,330
• Dworshak Zone – B Tag - 2,118
• Elk City Zone – A Tag.- 545
• Elk City Zone – B Tag - 1,131
• Lolo Zone – A Tag - 128
• Lolo Zone – B Tag - 630
• Middle Fork Zone – A Tag - 1,168
• Middle Fork Zone – B Tag - 925
• Pioneer Zone – B Tag - 2,467
• Salmon Zone – B Tag - 1,792
• Sawtooth Zone – A Tag  - 875 (Tags become available July 14)
• Sawtooth Zone – B Tag - 1,522 (Tags become available July 14)
• Selway Zone – A Tag - 179
• Selway Zone – B Tag - 480
• Smoky-Bennett Zone - B Tag - 692
• Weiser River Zone - B Tag - 3,560

Important note: If you are planning to buy your tag online, Fish and Game has updated its licensing system since last year's sale of resident capped elk zone tags. If you haven't logged in since then, you should make sure you log in to your account prior to the sale and familiarize yourself with the new system.

For current information on how many resident elk tags are available in each capped zone, go to the resident capped elk tag page on Fish and Game’s website.