Best States for Turkey Hunting 

Choosing the best states for turkey hunting is often subjective, and can vary greatly based on the metrics used. That said, it’s much easier to choose the “best” states when analyzing from various perspectives and goals. Thus, the following are some of the best turkey-hunting states based on each important category. 

Bowhunters usually take pride in being the only hunters in the field. They don’t like competition from gun hunters. Therefore, the following states provide windows when only archery hunters are in the field. Some are before shotgun seasons, and others are after. But they prioritize dedicated days for bowhunters. 

These states include Arizona, California, Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska. Arizona’s over-the-counter archery season operates in six units, and it runs May 9-22. California’s season is May 5-18. Iowa’s archery-only season is April 14 to May 18. Kansas archery runs April 7-15. And Nebraska is from March 25 to May 31. 

Some states are better than others for youth turkey hunters. Most states offer a one- or two-day youth turkey season. However, a few offer longer youth-only opportunities. The following are some of these. 

For the 2025 season, in Idaho, Youth Only is April 8-14. Over to Illinois, it’s March 29-30 and April 5-6. Iowa offers a three-day season for youth, which is April 11-13. The Kansas Youth Season is two weeks, running April 1-15. Mississippi’s is March 8-14. In Nebraska, Youth Archery is from March 25 to May 31 and Youth Shotgun is from April 5 to May 31. Over to North Carolina, it’s April 5-11. Rhode Island’s is April 14-20. The Texas North Zone is March 22-23 and May 17-18, and the South Zone is March 8-9 and May 3-4. Utah’s Youth Season is April 25-27. And Washington’s is April 1-7. 

Obviously, western states offer the most public land hunting opportunities. Wild turkeys live on some, but not all of these lands. Therefore, it’s important to note that some of the best public land turkey states are in the West, but not all are. 

To make this list, states need to offer significant acreages of public lands that also harbor huntable turkey populations. It’s based on the percentage of the state open to public hunting (with the expectation of turkeys). Note: The following percentages are courtesy of Backcountry Chronicles. 

In the West, some of these include Arizona (44.8%), California (38.3%), Colorado (35.3%), Idaho (65.8%), Montana (32.3%), Nevada (76.5%), New Mexico (40.5%), Oregon (56.6%), Utah (66.1%), Washington (31.7%), and Wyoming (50.5%).

In the Midwest, Michigan (20.3%), Minnesota (16.1%), and Wisconsin (14.9%) offer abundant public lands.

In the Northeast, Pennsylvania (14.6%), New York (12.7%), New Hampshire (17.3%), and New Jersey (15.7%) have high concentrations of open ground.

In the Southeast, Florida (17.1%) is the only state with more than 10% of its land being public land open to hunting. 

Other states with lower percentages still make the list, but because of the quality of turkey hunting on the public lands within these destinations. These include Alabama (3.3%), Arkansas (9.7%), Connecticut (5.6%), Delaware (4.9%), Georgia (3.3%), Maryland (5.5%), Missouri (5.7%), Rhode Island (9%), Tennessee (8.9%), Vermont (7.9%), Virginia (7.9%), and West Virginia (9.6%).  

While the cost for a full-season license and tag might not meet the standards below, the following states offer at least a short-term hunting license and tag option that does. 

For residents, states with license and permit costs under $40 include: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin. 

For non-residents, states offering license and permit costs under $150 include: Connecticut, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. 

Note: Some states might have been omitted due to complex or unknown license fee structures. 

The best turkey hunting states for less hunting pressure involve several variables. The most important include number of turkeys, number of hunters, hunter-to-turkey ratio, available land mass, available public land acreage, and more. 

All considered, California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington are among the states with some of the least turkey hunting pressure. 

The best turkey hunting states offer the most quality experience. All factors considered, these states rise to the top and produce the best hunting. These include Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin. Some of the western states could land on this list as well. 

Fall turkey hunting is not nearly as popular as spring turkey hunting. That said, it has a far richer heritage and long-running traditions in the Northeast. It’s especially popular among those who hunt fall turkeys with dogs. States to consider most include Maine, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. 

Some states are better than others for March turkey hunting. States with general season turkey hunting opportunities in March make this list. Alabama kicks off in late March. The main season starts March 25 in Zones 1 and 3. California’s General Season launches on March 29. Of course, Florida offers numerous opportunities. Its South Zone Regular Season starts March 1, and the North Zone Regular Zone begins March 15. Georgia’s Statewide Season opens on March 29. In Mississippi, it’s March 15. Nebraska’s opener is March 25. Texas’ South Zone starts March 15, and North Zone kicks off March 29. Additionally, many of the above states (and others) have youth seasons ranging from late February through March. 

Since most states offer April turkey seasons, we’ll skip that category and move on to the best states for May seasons. States with at least 15 days of turkey hunting spanning in May make this roundup.  

Arizona (22 days), Colorado (31 days), Connecticut (31 days), Idaho (25 days), Iowa (18 days — season 4), Kansas (31 days), Maine (31 days), Maryland (23 days), Massachusetts (24 days), Minnesota (31 days — broken into different seasons), Montana (31 days), Nebraska (31 days), New Hampshire (31 days), New Jersey (17 days — broken into different seasons), New Mexico (15 days), New York (31 days), Ohio (31 days — combining North and South Zones), Oklahoma (16 days), Oregon (31 days), Pennsylvania (28 days), Rhode Island (18 days), South Dakota (31 days), Tennessee (25 days), Utah 31 (days), Vermont (31 days), Virginia (17 days), Washington (31 days), West Virginia (25 days), Wisconsin (27 days — split into various seasons), and Wyoming (31 days). 

The best states list for June turkey hunting isn’t nearly as robust as others. Two states offer turkey seasons that extend into June. Examples include Ohio, which ends June 1, and Michigan, where it ends June 7. In the past, a handful of other states extended their spring seasons into early June but no longer do. 

Eastern turkeys get their name from (mostly) living in the eastern half of the nation. The states that offer the best Eastern turkey hunting experiences tend to include Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. 

The Rio Grande turkey lives in pockets throughout the western half of the country. Generally, the best states for Rio Grande turkey hunting include California, Hawaii, Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Washington. 

The Merriam’s turkey lives in various locations throughout the mountainous West. The best states for Merriam’s turkey hunting include Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota, and Wyoming. 

The Osceola wild turkey is home to the Sunshine State. This subspecies inhabits the southern ¾ of the Florida Peninsula, and nowhere else. Therefore, Florida is the best and only state for Osceola turkey hunting. 

The Gould’s wild turkey subspecies predominantly live in Mexico. However, a moderate population is in Arizona and very small population inhabits New Mexico. That said, Arizona is the best and only real option for hunting Gould’s turkeys in America.