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How preference points work
A Colorado preference point is a credit toward drawing a limited hunt code: you earn one each year you apply for a species and don't draw your first choice, and CPW awards licenses to the highest-point applicants first. You can also buy a point on purpose, without hunting, using the point-only code P-999-99-P. Residents and non-residents compete against separate caps, so points build in two effectively separate pools. CPW Primary Draw
How you earn a point
Two ways, both inside the primary draw application window:
- Apply and miss. If you apply for a species and don't draw your first-choice hunt code, CPW credits you one preference point for that species. Points accumulate year over year until you draw a first choice, at which point they reset for that species.
- Apply for a point only. You don't have to apply for an actual hunt code to bank a point — the point-only code P-999-99-P buys a preference point directly, with no chance (and no intent) of drawing a license that year. Hunters saving up for a hard-to-draw unit use this every year they don't plan to hunt that species. Putting it first still leaves your second, third and fourth choices free for real hunt codes.
Higher point totals draw first. For units where demand far exceeds the license quota, the number of points needed to draw can run into double digits — which is why point strategy is a multi-year plan, not a one-season decision. CPW Primary Draw
Resident vs non-resident: separate pools
CPW Primary DrawPoint fees — most species are free
| Species | Point fee (resident) | Point fee (non-resident) |
|---|---|---|
| Elk, deer, pronghorn, bear | None | None |
| Moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat | $50.00 | $100.00 |
Elk, deer, pronghorn and bear cost nothing extra to hold a point — you pay only the per-species application fee (see the fee tables). The once-in-a-lifetime species — moose, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and mountain goat — charge $50 resident / $100 non-resident for the point itself. That fee is a choice you make on the application, not an automatic charge: decline it and you are charged nothing and receive no point. Take it and CPW bills the card on file when draw results post — either because you applied for the point-only code as your first choice, or because you missed your first choice. It is waived for youth and for resident lifetime license holders. CPW Primary Draw
Weighted points are a lottery, not a ladder
Those same three species run a second layer on top of ordinary points, and it is routinely described backwards. You build regular preference points first; once you hold three and miss your first choice again, further misses earn weighted points. A weighted point is not a place in a queue. CPW converts your application into a fresh random number and divides it by your weighted points plus one, then hands out licenses from the lowest number upward. More points shrink your number and genuinely improve your odds every year — but a first-year applicant can still beat someone sitting on ten. Think extra lottery tickets, not seniority. Desert bighorn sheep is the exception inside the exception: it awards no preference points at all. CPW Primary Draw
The hybrid draw — the back door into premier units
Points are not the only way into the hardest units, which matters if you have been told a marquee unit is a fifteen-year wait. Inside the primary draw CPW runs a hybrid draw: a purely random draw for a small share of the licenses in hunt codes that took 10 or more resident preference points to draw last year and that have at least five licenses this year. Elk, deer, pronghorn and bear only. You need at least five preference points, you must apply as an individual rather than a group, and a hybrid code has to be your first choice; non-resident caps still apply. The cost of winning is steep — draw a hybrid license and you forfeit every preference point you hold for that species. Miss, and you earn a point like anyone else. CPW Primary Draw
Points don't guarantee anything by themselves
A point only matters at the moment of the draw — it doesn't reserve a tag or carry any value outside CPW's system. It also doesn't help in the secondary draw or leftover/OTC sales, which run outside the point system entirely (see the full deadline calendar). Points are awarded per species, not per unit, sex, season or method, and a point you earn this spring is spendable on next spring's application, not this one.
One piece of that is worth knowing before you rank your choices: only your first choice touches the point system. Second, third and fourth choices neither spend points nor earn them — so drawing a second choice gets you a tag this year and leaves your points intact for next year. Points are forfeited only when you successfully draw your first choice. CPW Primary Draw If you're deciding whether a unit is worth years of points, read CPW's own draw statistics before you commit a season to the wait.
Common questions
How do you get a preference point in Colorado without hunting?
Apply during the primary draw window using the point-only code P-999-99-P. It banks a preference point for that species without entering you in the draw for an actual hunt code.
Do preference points expire in Colorado?
No, they don't expire on a calendar — they carry forward year to year and reset only when you successfully draw a first-choice hunt code for that species.
Is there a fee to hold a preference point in Colorado?
Not for elk, deer, pronghorn, or bear — you pay only the application fee. Moose, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, and mountain goat charge $50 (resident) or $100 (non-resident) for the point, and you choose on the application whether to take it: decline and you're charged nothing but receive no point. If you take it, CPW charges the card on file when results post. The fee is waived for youth and resident lifetime license holders.
What are weighted preference points in Colorado?
An extra layer used only for moose, Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep and mountain goat. After you hold three regular points, further misses earn weighted points. They are not a queue position — CPW re-randomises your application number and divides it by your weighted points plus one, awarding licenses from the lowest number up. More points mean better odds, never a guaranteed turn.
What is the Colorado hybrid draw?
A random draw run inside the primary draw for a small share of licenses in the hardest hunt codes — those that took 10 or more resident preference points last year and have at least five licenses this year, for elk, deer, pronghorn and bear. You need at least five points, must apply individually, and must list a hybrid code first. Drawing one forfeits all your preference points for that species.
Can I submit a separate application just for a preference point?
No — not alongside a hunt-code application for the same species in the same primary draw. CPW disqualifies both applications. Use one application and put the point-only code P-999-99-P as your first choice; your second through fourth choices can still be real hunt codes.
Do residents and non-residents compete for the same licenses?
Not directly. Colorado draws residents and non-residents against separate caps for most limited licenses, with non-residents generally capped around 20–25% of a hunt code's licenses, so each group effectively climbs its own point ladder.