Unit 20 cow elk, private land only, season 5
How many preference points it took to draw this hunt in 2026, and your estimated chance at every point level.
412 adult residents put this hunt first; 389 drew (94%). Drawn out at 0 preference points: 305 of 328 applicants with 0 drew.
Any points drew
13 adult nonresidents put this hunt first; 13 drew (100%). Drawn out at 0 preference points: 9 of 9 applicants with 0 drew.
Any points drew
Compare every Colorado elk hunt at your point level →
Odds by preference points
Residents
| Preference points | Applicants | Drew | Actual odds | Estimated chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| 3 | 6 | 6 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| 2 | 10 | 10 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| 1 | 65 | 65 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| 0 | 328 | 305 | 1 in 1.1 | |
| All | 412 | 389 | 1 in 1.1 |
Nonresidents
| Preference points | Applicants | Drew | Actual odds | Estimated chance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| 0 | 9 | 9 | 1 in 1.0 | |
| All | 13 | 13 | 1 in 1.0 |
Trends, 2024–2026
"Cutoff" is the preference point level where licenses ran out that year (CPW's "drawn out at" level).
| Year | Applicants | Drew | Odds | Cutoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 421 | 314 | 1 in 1.3 | 0 |
| 2025 | 408 | 353 | 1 in 1.2 | 0 |
| 2026 | 412 | 389 | 1 in 1.1 | 0 |
Drawn out at: 0 in 2024, 0 in 2025, 0 in 2026. The bar has held steady at about 0 points.
| Year | Applicants | Drew | Odds | Cutoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 15 | 9 | 1 in 1.7 | 0 |
| 2025 | 13 | 11 | 1 in 1.2 | 0 |
| 2026 | 13 | 13 | 1 in 1.0 | 0 |
Drawn out at: 0 in 2024, 0 in 2025, 0 in 2026. The bar has held steady at about 0 points. Applicants fell 13% since 2024.
How this draw works
Colorado draws limited licenses by preference points, and only your first choice uses them. Licenses go to the applicants with the most points first; at the level where they run out (the "drawn out at" level) applicants are drawn at random. If you don't draw your first choice, you gain a point. CPW big game hunting.
About the numbers. These are adult first-choice applicants, straight from CPW's 2026 draw recap. Youth and landowner licenses are drawn separately. The estimated chance is the share who actually drew at each point level, filled in from the cutoff where nobody held that many points. Applicant pools change every year. How we check and estimate.
Other hunts in Unit 20
- Bull elk, late season, rifle EM020L1R · 172 applicants
- Bull elk, late season 2, rifle EM020L2R · 204 applicants
- Bull elk, archery season EM020O1A · 61 applicants
- Bull elk, muzzleloader season EM020O1M · 78 applicants
- Bull elk, 1st rifle season EM020O1R · 134 applicants
- Bull elk, 2nd rifle season EM020O2R · 127 applicants
- Bull elk, 3rd rifle season EM020O3R · 97 applicants
- Bull elk, 4th rifle season EM020O4R · 75 applicants
- Cow elk, late season, rifle EF020L1R · 18 applicants
- Cow elk, late season 3, rifle EF020L3R · 37 applicants
- Cow elk, archery season EF020O1A · 15 applicants
- Cow elk, muzzleloader season EF020O1M · 18 applicants