Crook leads Wyoming's Buck Index at 23, and no Wyoming county falls inside a big metro in this snapshot. Sheridan is second at 14 and Platte third at 11. On the national scale, Wyoming's counties score low. Carbon and Sweetwater share a displayed score of 2, the lowest in the state. The county order compares documented big-buck history per estimated bow-huntable acre on a national scale. That gives hunters a specific county comparison, while leaving permits and the actual property to be checked separately.
KEY FINDINGS
- Crook leads Wyoming at 23. No Wyoming county falls in a Census metro area of 1 million people or more, so Crook is the leader on this basis.
- Sheridan follows at 14, and Platte is third at 11. Big Horn is fourth at 10.
- Weston, Johnson and Park share a displayed score of 9. They hold fifth through seventh place in the table.
- Wyoming's counties score low on the national scale. Carbon and Sweetwater share a displayed score of 2, and Crook leads at 23.
- All 23 Wyoming counties are rated. The score is a Buck Index, not an official county harvest rate.
Wyoming 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 23 entries shown
| State rank | County | Buck Index |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Crook | 23 |
| 2 | Sheridan | 14 |
| 3 | Platte | 11 |
| 4 | Big Horn | 10 |
| 5 | Weston | 9 |
| 6 | Johnson | 9 |
| 7 | Park | 9 |
| 8 | Goshen | 8 |
| 9 | Washakie | 8 |
| 10 | Campbell | 8 |
01County comparison
Crook leads, with Sheridan and Platte next
Crook holds first place at 23 and Sheridan second at 14. Platte's 11 holds third place, ahead of Big Horn at 10. The national scoring frame matters: Crook's 23 sits on a 0 to 100 scale built for the whole country, so the score reads against that wider comparison.
The denominator is modeled bow-huntable habitat. 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
Three counties tie at 8 in the upper middle of the table
Goshen, Washakie and Campbell share a displayed score of 8 in eighth through tenth place. Lincoln and Fremont share a displayed score of 6 in eleventh and twelfth. Natrona is thirteenth at 5.
Crook in first through Sweetwater in twenty-third span displayed scores from 23 to 2. Sixteen counties score 8 or below, so the middle of the table is crowded and small gaps between neighbors carry little weight.
03County comparison
Sublette, Carbon and Sweetwater fall to the bottom of the table
Hot Springs, Laramie, Teton, Uinta, Niobrara, Albany and Converse share a displayed score of 4 in fourteenth through twentieth place. Sublette is twenty-first at 3. Carbon and Sweetwater share a displayed score of 2 in twenty-second and twenty-third place.
Crook's 23 sits far above the bottom of the table, so a single state-level impression hides the spread. These comparisons show why a broad regional impression can be too coarse for the county question.
04County comparison
Keep the county, the unit and the property separate
The state wildlife agency's deer hunting information gives the agency context for seasons and permits. This report does not allocate harvest totals to counties.
Before a county becomes a trip, check the unit and permit conditions for the exact ground being considered. Access may make that decision long before the index does.
05Basis of this report
Sources and method
FDR derived this October 17, 2026 snapshot from the 2011 through 2025 history window, estimated bow-huntable acreage and national scaling, on a 0 to 100 scale. The scores are not 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
FDR Scout puts county harvest history like this on the map of the ground you hunt. Open Scout →