Outside the Portland metro, Union leads Oregon's Buck Index at 2, and Wallowa shares that displayed score. Inside the metro, Clackamas leads at 0, but all five Portland-metro counties share that score. On the national scale, Oregon's counties score low, and 34 of 36 counties display 0. The county order compares documented big-buck history per estimated bow-huntable acre. That gives hunters a specific county comparison, while leaving permits and the actual property to be checked separately.
KEY FINDINGS
- Outside the Portland metro, Union leads at 2. Inside it, Clackamas leads at 0, and all five metro counties share that score. FDR names the leaders on each side of the line, and a big metro means a Census metro area of 1 million people or more.
- Union and Wallowa share a displayed score of 2. Union holds first place and Wallowa second, on the underlying rate before rounding.
- All five Portland-metro counties display 0. Clackamas, Columbia, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill share that score, and their ranks run from fourth to twenty-seventh.
- On the national scale, Oregon's counties score low. Thirty-four of the 36 counties display 0, and all 36 are rated in this snapshot. The score is a relative Buck Index, not an official county harvest rate.
Oregon county finder
Where does your county rank?
Derived FDR scores on a national 0 to 100 scale. History: 2011 through 2025. Captured October 17, 2026. Order uses the underlying rate before rounding. Zero is a valid score. Not rated means the county has no qualifying bow-huntable acreage or is mostly inside city limits. Counties marked metro sit inside a Census metro area of 1 million people or more.
10 of 36 entries shown
| State rank | County | Buck Index |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Union | 2 |
| 2 | Wallowa | 2 |
| 3 | Benton | 0 |
| 4 | Clackamas Portland metro | 0 |
| 5 | Clatsop | 0 |
| 6 | Columbia Portland metro | 0 |
| 7 | Coos | 0 |
| 8 | Curry | 0 |
| 9 | Deschutes | 0 |
| 10 | Gilliam | 0 |
01County comparison
Union and Wallowa lead at 2, and the rest score 0
Union and Wallowa share a displayed score of 2. Union holds first place and Wallowa second. The other 34 counties share a displayed score of 0, and all 36 Oregon counties are rated in this snapshot.
The score sits on a 0 to 100 scale built for the whole country, so Union's 2 reads against that wider comparison. A county with less qualifying acreage can rank high when its documented big-buck history is concentrated relative to that acreage. The score does not identify which parcel produced that history or whether a hunter can gain access to it.
02County comparison
The Portland metro counties share one displayed score
Clackamas, Columbia, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill sit in the Portland metro and share a displayed score of 0. Their ranks run from fourth to twenty-seventh, so the metro counties are separated only by the underlying order.
Deschutes is ninth, Lane thirtieth and Douglas thirty-second. All three share a displayed score of 0, and only the underlying rate before rounding separates them.
03County comparison
Malheur, Lake and Harney close the table at 0
Malheur is thirty-fifth, Lake thirty-fourth and Harney thirty-sixth. All three share a displayed score of 0, and they hold the last three places in the table.
Union's 2 is above Malheur's 0 under this measure. That is a documented difference in county history after the acreage adjustment. Reading that gap as a measured hunting difference would go beyond the score.
04County comparison
Check the unit and permit before choosing a county
Start with the state wildlife agency's big game seasons information, since this report does not set season dates or unit boundaries.
The agency's big game hunting information is the broader starting point. Choose a county you can actually hunt, because a rank in this table does not secure access. A move from Benton to Lane changes the rank number while leaving the displayed Buck Index at 0. Access may make that decision long before the index does.
05Basis of this report
Sources, window and method
FDR derived this October 17, 2026 snapshot from the 2011 through 2025 history window. Scores use estimated bow-huntable acreage and national scaling. They are sensitive to reporting and modeled-area choices. The public display ranges from 0 to 100, with no interpretation as harvest odds, population density or guaranteed access.
Compare the other states in the FDR county report series.
NOTES AND SOURCES
- Derived FDR scores on a national 0 to 100 scale. History: 2011 through 2025. Captured October 17, 2026. Order uses the underlying rate before rounding. Zero is a valid score. Not rated means the county has no qualifying bow-huntable acreage or is mostly inside city limits. Counties marked metro sit inside a Census metro area of 1 million people or more.
Fully Drawn Research is an independent data analysis desk, not affiliated with any state wildlife agency, transportation agency, mapping provider or outfitter. FDR county scores and interpretations are independent analysis. A county ranking does not evaluate an individual property.
Keep reading
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