● Ranked from real New York data · 2024-25 season
Best counties to lease or own hunting land in New York
New York counties where private hunting access is worth the most — strong deer harvest AND very little public land, so a hunter has real demand and nowhere free to go. If you own ground here, this is what it's worth.
#1Steuben County15,595 deer · 3.1% public3.1% public→#2Chautauqua County8,895 deer · 3.2% public3.2% public→#3Allegany County8,737 deer · 8.2% public8.2% public→#4Cattaraugus County8,337 deer · 4.5% public4.5% public→#5Jefferson County6,871 deer · 4.5% public4.5% public→#6Erie County6,327 deer · 0.4% public0.4% public→#7Livingston County6,426 deer · 3.1% public3.1% public→#8Ontario County5,998 deer · 2.3% public2.3% public→#9St. Lawrence County6,589 deer · 14.3% public14.3% public→#10Delaware County5,715 deer · 7.4% public7.4% public→#11Wyoming County5,232 deer · 0.7% public0.7% public→#12Genesee County5,179 deer · 1.7% public1.7% public→
How this list is ranked
Ranked by opportunity = reported deer harvest (normalized) × private-land scarcity (1 − huntable public %). Strong harvest with little public land ranks highest. A relative guide from public data, not an appraisal.
Data year: 2024-25 season. Each row links to its full page with every number cited to its agency source. A place missing a signal is never guessed — it simply can't rank.
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