Arizona Unit 28 Mule Deer Hunting Guide

Arizona Unit 28 is a low-desert mule deer unit sitting between 2,623 and 7,423 feet of elevation, spanning 1,427,568 acres in the southwestern part of the state. With 88% public land, this is a unit where DIY hunters have real room to roam, and it's built a reputation among desert mule deer enthusiasts as a place where sitting water sources or grinding through spot-and-stalk tactics can both produce results, depending on the year and the conditions.

This is a unit that draws attention for its accessibility as much as its deer. Hunters researching Arizona Unit 28 mule deer hunting will find a mix of hunt types, tag quotas, and harvest trends that make it worth understanding before committing an application. The terrain runs from low desert flats and washes near the Gila River corridor up into rockier country around higher points in the unit, giving hunters options depending on time of year and personal hunting style.

Below, we break down what the data actually shows for Unit 28 — harvest trends, herd survey numbers, tag quota movement, and how to get an application in for 2026 — using figures compiled by HuntPilot.

Harvest Success Rates

Unit 28's harvest numbers show meaningful swings from year to year, which hunters need to factor into their expectations.

• 2025: 908 hunters, 280 harvested, 31% success
• 2024: 449 hunters, 242 harvested, 54% success
• 2023: 1,103 hunters, 522 harvested, 47% success
• 2022: 1,056 hunters, 426 harvested, 40% success

The four-year trend shows success rates bouncing between 31% and 54%, with hunter numbers fluctuating even more dramatically — from 449 hunters in 2024 to over 1,100 in 2023. That kind of swing in hunter pressure, paired with success rate volatility, suggests conditions (weather, deer movement, water availability) play a significant role in outcomes each season. The 2024 season stands out with the fewest hunters afield but the second-highest success rate, while 2025 saw nearly double the hunters of 2024 but the lowest success rate of the four years — a pattern worth noting for anyone trying to gauge how crowding affects success in this unit.

Overall, hunters should expect success rates in the 30-50% range depending on the year, which is respectable for a desert mule deer unit with this much hunting pressure variability.

Herd Health & Population Trends

Wildlife survey data for Unit 28, drawn from four survey years between 2022 and 2025, shows an average buck:doe ratio of 27:100 across six surveys, with an average of 108 animals observed per survey.

A 27:100 buck:doe ratio is on the lower end for mule deer herds and suggests a population that isn't overloaded with mature bucks relative to does. This is a realistic, biologically sound ratio — not one of the inflated numbers that sometimes show up in small-sample surveys. Combined with a modest average of 108 animals observed per survey, the data points to a herd that's present but not dense, reinforcing that success in this unit requires putting in the time to locate deer rather than expecting to stumble into concentrated herds.

Hunters should treat this ratio as a sign of a working desert herd rather than a trophy-heavy population — it lines up with what forum-level chatter about the unit describes: hunters glassing washes and desert flats, working water sources, and covering ground rather than finding deer stacked up in small pockets.

Access & Terrain

Unit 28 offers 88% public land across its 1,427,568 acres, which makes it genuinely DIY-friendly. With no wilderness designation in the unit, hunters don't face the access restrictions or guide requirements that come with wilderness-area hunts in other states — this is open, drivable, and hikeable country for hunters willing to do their own scouting.

Elevation ranges from 2,623 feet up to 7,423 feet, which means hunters can find both low desert terrain and higher, cooler country within the same unit boundary. This elevation spread gives hunters flexibility to hunt lower desert flats and washes early in a hunt and push into higher elevation terrain if deer aren't showing in the lows, or vice versa depending on weather and time of year.

General terrain themes that come up repeatedly among hunters who've spent time in Unit 28 include desert flats, rocky high points, and river-corridor country. Hunters have described splitting time between glassing higher points and working lower desert country near river drainages, with debate over whether sitting water sources or covering ground with spot-and-stalk tactics produces better results — a reasonable question in a unit this large, since tactics that work in tight canyon country don't necessarily translate to open desert flats.

With public land at 88%, access itself typically isn't the limiting factor in Unit 28 — the limiting factor is putting in the scouting time to find where deer are concentrated in a given year. Hunters serious about scouting this unit should use HuntPilot's public land and terrain overlay tools to identify drainages, elevation bands, and access points worth checking before setting boots on the ground.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit 28 Worth Applying For?

Unit 28 is a solid option for hunters who want a legitimate DIY desert mule deer hunt without wrestling access issues. The 88% public land figure is a real asset — hunters aren't fighting through a patchwork of private ranches to find huntable ground, and the lack of wilderness designation means no special access restrictions to navigate.

The harvest data tells an honest story: success rates have ranged from 31% to 54% over the past four seasons, which is solid for a unit that also sees heavy and variable hunter pressure. That volatility cuts both ways — hunters could catch a year like 2024, with fewer hunters and higher success, or a year like 2025, with nearly double the hunter numbers and the lowest success rate of the stretch. Anyone applying should go in expecting a real, weather- and pressure-dependent hunt, not a guaranteed high-percentage tag.

On the trophy side, we don't have record-book entry data available for Unit 28 in the structured context provided, so we can't make a qualitative claim about trophy potential here — hunters looking specifically for trophy-class bucks should treat that as an open question and do additional research rather than assume either way.

Tag quotas are worth watching closely. Hunt type 1097 saw a 50% cut in tags from 2024 to 2025 (dropping from 600 to 300), and hunt type 1043 was cut 18% over the same period (275 down to 225). Hunt types 1044, 1098, and 1162 have held stable. These cuts suggest Arizona Game and Fish is managing tag numbers down in at least two of the unit's hunt types, which could mean either a response to herd conditions or simply an adjustment in allocation — either way, hunters should expect competition for tags to shift as quotas move.

Bottom line: Unit 28 is worth applying for if hunters want a public-land-heavy desert mule deer hunt with decent and reasonably documented success rates, and are comfortable with year-to-year variability in both herd sign and hunter crowding. It's not a unit to bank on for guaranteed trophy quality given the lack of trophy data, but it is a unit where the fundamentals — access, huntable acreage, and workable success rates — are solid.

How to Apply

Note that both resident and nonresident applicants must hold a qualifying license before applying — this license fee is separate from and in addition to the application fee.

Arizona's draw system does not use resident preference points the way some western states do for guaranteed draws — for exact draw odds by point level for Unit 28's specific hunt types, check HuntPilot's Arizona state page at /states/az or the current draw report published by Arizona Game and Fish.

Application dates and fees change every draw cycle. For the current deadlines, fees, and draw odds, see HuntPilot's Arizona page at /states/az.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the terrain like in Arizona Unit 28? Unit 28 covers elevations from 2,623 to 7,423 feet across nearly 1.43 million acres, with a mix of low desert flats, washes, and higher rocky terrain. There's no wilderness designation in the unit, meaning no special access restrictions apply. General terrain themes reported by hunters include desert flats and higher points suited to glassing, along with river-corridor country lower in elevation — giving hunters flexibility depending on where deer are concentrated in a given season.

What is harvest success like in Unit 28? Success rates over the past four years have ranged from 31% (2025) to 54% (2024), with 2023 and 2022 landing at 47% and 40% respectively. Hunter numbers have varied significantly across those same years, from 449 hunters in 2024 up to 1,103 in 2023, so success rates appear tied at least in part to hunting pressure and yearly conditions rather than being consistent year over year.

How big are the mule deer in Unit 28? Trophy record data is not available for Unit 28 in the current dataset, so no qualitative trophy assessment can be made. Wildlife survey data shows an average buck:doe ratio of 27:100 across recent surveys, which reflects a working desert herd rather than a population skewed toward mature bucks. Hunters focused specifically on trophy potential should seek additional unit-specific research before applying.

Is Unit 28 worth applying for as a nonresident? For nonresidents comfortable with a public-land DIY hunt, Unit 28 offers 88% public access and no wilderness-related guide requirements, which keeps the door open for unguided hunts.

Should hunters sit water or spot-and-stalk in Unit 28? This is a common debate among hunters who've spent time in the unit's desert terrain, and the right answer likely depends on weather, time of year, and where deer are concentrated that season. Given the unit's mix of low desert flats and higher terrain, hunters may want to scout both water sources and glassing points using HuntPilot's terrain and public land map overlays before deciding on a strategy, since the unit's size and terrain variability mean no single tactic works uniformly across all of Unit 28.