A male and a female pheasant hunter, both holding shotguns and wearing orange hats, talk and point in a field in South Dakota.
SD Pheasant Hunting

Get a Pheasant Hunting License

A small game license is required to pheasant hunt in South Dakota. It also allows you to hunt a wide variety of other game, like grouse, gray partridge, quail and more. 

To purchase a hunting license online, create a Go Outdoors South Dakota account through the Department of Game, Fish & Parks. You can also download the free Go Outdoors SD mobile app with Google Play or the App Store to renew, purchase and store your licenses and reservations on your smartphone or tablet. Visitors will want to obtain the Nonresident Hunting & Trapping License (different fees apply depending on the species you’re hunting, the number of days and the hunters’ ages).

Please note: GF&P has a new registration system, so anyone with a pre-2022 account will need to create a new one. No problem! Whether you’re buying your first license or your 40th, it’s easy to set up your new account before you buy your license.

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Resident & Nonresident Licenses

There are differences between resident and nonresident licenses, but the buying process is the same. Take note of the different season dates, get your license and plan your outdoor adventure.

Youth-Only Pheasant Season

Start Date: September 27, 2025

End Date: October 5, 2025

Resident-Only Pheasant Season

Start Date: October 11, 2025

End Date: October 13, 2025

Traditional Pheasant Season

Start Date: October 18, 2025

End Date: January 31, 2026

Two pheasant hunters walking in corn field in South Dakota.

Buy in South Dakota

Hunters can buy licenses from more than 250 registered sales agents in South Dakota (like select gas stations and bait shops). Find locations online or call SD GFP at 605-223-7660 and they’ll point you in the direction of the nearest agent. 

Young hunter holding a pheasant with other hunters in the background

Buy Online

Save some time by purchasing your South Dakota pheasant hunting license online. To apply, set up your Go Outdoors SD account and follow the steps.

Always Carry Your License While Hunting

The South Dakota Department of Game, Fish & Parks requires every hunter to carry their small game, fishing or trapping license while hunting. Instead of a paper copy, you can carry a digital copy of your license. Paper copies are still valid, but the digital version’s barcode can be scanned and recognized as your official license. Do this by logging into your GF&P account on your smartphone, taking a screenshot of your license from your GF&P online account, or by downloading the free Go Outdoors SD mobile app.

Hunting

Nonresident Licenses Special Information

Nonresident licenses are for anyone who does not live in the state of South Dakota. They are redeemable for two 5-day hunting periods. A little tip for selecting your dates: Choose your first hunting period for when you plan to visit South Dakota. Then, if you aren’t sure when you’ll be back for the second trip, choose the last week the calendar will allow. You can always move these dates up on the calendar, but you can’t move them back. 

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Yellow lab chasing a pheasant with two hunters behind in the field

Nonresident Shooting Preserve Licenses

Shooting Preserve Licenses allow nonresidents to hunt on licensed shooting preserves and take the small game for which that preserve is licensed. They are available for the following periods: one day, 5-day period, season long.

Black lab holding a pheasant in its mouth

Bringing Your Dog to South Dakota

Your hunting buddy is welcome in South Dakota! And while a rabies vaccination for your dog is mandatory, you don’t need to bring a health certificate if you’ll be here for less than 30 days. Check out the Hunting and Trapping Handbook for details. 

FAQS

View some common questions below or contact SD Game, Fish & Parks for additional clarification at [email protected] or 605-223-7660.

Q

How do I get a copy of my small game license?

Q

The small game hunting license asks for two 5-day periods, what should I put down for the second period if I don’t know when I'm going to be able to hunt again?

Q

Can I carry my license on my smartphone or in the app?

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Youth Season
Youth Season
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Public Land

Best SoDak Towns For Pheasant Hunting

South Dakota has more than 5 million free-access acres open to hunting. Some are federal and state-owned grounds, while even more are private areas leased for public hunting. Scout your outing with SD Game, Fish & Parks satellite maps. Some of the more sought-after areas in the state for pheasant hunting lie within the Central Missouri River region and the Northeast Glacial Lakes & Prairies region.

Premier pheasant hunting destinations in the Central region to set up your basecamp for hunting season include: Mobridge, with its 1960s Pheasant Drive-In movie theater; Winner and its vast Tripp County farmland (ranked #1 in South Dakota for pheasants harvested); Mitchell (home to the Pheasant Country Chapter of Pheasants Forever); the reservation lands and national grasslands of Pierre; and Chamberlain/Oacoma, known for one of the top pheasant-producing spots in South Dakota.

Towns best known for top-notch pheasant hunting in the Northeast are: Huron (known as "Ringneck Nation" and home to the World's Largest Pheasant statue); Aberdeen, with the most Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) walk-in hunting land in the state; WatertownBrookings; and Redfield, aka the "Pheasant Capital of the World."

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