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What does a fishing license cost in each state?

A visitor's day of fishing costs from $9 in Missouri to $53 in North Dakota, with any required stamps.

Checked on each state's own pages ·

The Fishing License Guide trip cost calculator

Price your trip

Do you live in Florida?
Water
How many days will you fish?
Estimated total$17.00
  • Listed prices include the issuance fee allowed under Florida law. A license agent may add a further $0.50.

You may not need a license if:

  • Anyone, on Florida's free fishing days.

Estimate only, for 2026 prices (checked Nov 5, 2026). Buy only from the state:FWC official license sales (opens a new tab).

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Pick a state, your days on the water and your age. We work out the cheapest set of licenses and stamps from the state's own price list.

Checked against 62,576 test trips across all 50 states: every one gave the same licenses and total as our separately written price check, and 1,152 shared trip links reopened the same price. Last run Nov 13, 2026.

Every state at a glance

Prices for residents and visitors, who's exempt, free fishing days and catch limits. Every fact links to the state's own pages, and each section shows when we last checked it.

Sold by
The state only. This site doesn't sell licenses.
Sources
Each state's own price lists and rules, linked beside every fact
Rechecked
Every month, with the date on each section

Compare two states

A visitor's 1-day freshwater license, by state. Tap a state for its full guide.
  1. AL$38.05
  2. AK$15
  3. AZ$20
  4. AR$15
  5. CA$21.09
  6. CO$21.90
  7. CT$22
  8. DE$12.50
  9. FL$17
  10. GA$10
  11. HI$10
  12. ID$22.75
  13. IL$10.50
  14. IN$15
  15. IA$12
  16. KS$10
  17. KY$15.86
  18. LA$30
  19. ME$18
  20. MD$35
  21. MA$35.50
  22. MI$10
  23. MN$14
  24. MS$10
  25. MO$9
  26. MT$31.50
  27. NE$12
  28. NV$18
  29. NH$15
  30. NJ$9
  31. NM$16
  32. NY$10
  33. NC$29
  34. ND$53
  35. OH$27.04
  36. OK$26
  37. OR$29
  38. PA$31.97
  39. RI$20
  40. SC$11
  41. SD$26
  42. TN$20
  43. TX$16
  44. UT$44
  45. VT$21
  46. VA$20
  47. WA$27.05
  48. WV$16
  49. WI$15
  50. WY$14
  • Up to $12
  • $12–20
  • $20–30
  • Over $30

A visitor's day: key figures

  • Most expensive visitor day

    $53

    Of the 50 states, North Dakota is the most expensive place for an adult visitor to fish fresh water for one day: $53 with the Non-resident 3-day fishing license, plus the required Fishing, Hunting, Furbearer Certificate (non-resident) (2026-27 prices).

    Applies to
    North Dakota, 2026-27 licenses
    Checked
    Copies the figure, where it comes from and this page's address
    How this figure was checked
    • Where it comes from: North Dakota: Non-resident 3-day fishing license (opens a new tab) ($48); North Dakota: Fishing, Hunting, Furbearer Certificate (non-resident) (required) (opens a new tab) ($5). Every part of this figure comes from the state's own pages.
    • How it's worked out: We work out the cheapest licenses an adult visitor (age 40) needs to fish fresh water for one day in every state from each state's own price list, then compare all 50. The figure is left off if the cheapest or dearest state's price rests on a secondary source or has a note on this data.
    • What the price includes: North Dakota: Listed prices are license fees. A Fishing, Hunting, Furbearer Certificate ($2 resident, $5 non-resident) is needed once a year and is shown separately.
    • Checked Nov 6, 2026. Every month we compare each source page behind these prices with the copy the figure came from. The date only moves forward when nothing has changed, or after a changed page has been read again.
    • The line on the state's page (North Dakota): "| 3 Day Fishing | $48 | $5 |" (Non-resident 3-day fishing license (opens a new tab))
    • Independent blind check, November 13, 2026: matched for the Non-resident 3-day fishing license; the Fishing, Hunting, Furbearer Certificate (non-resident) wasn't part of that check. Someone who hadn't seen our prices looked them up on the state's own pages.
    • Tested: The calculator behind these figures matched a separately written price check on all 62,576 test trips across the 50 states (last run Nov 13, 2026).

All states, A to Z

Compare and plan

How this site works

  1. We read the official pages. Each state's wildlife agency publishes its rules across many pages and PDFs. We gather them in one place.
  2. We link every fact. Each price, exemption and limit has a link to where it came from. If the official site doesn't say, we use a named secondary source and mark it.
  3. We date our checks. Each section shows when it was last checked.
  4. We don't sell licenses. Only the state does. We're not affiliated with any agency.
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Where the prices come from

  1. Straight from the state. Every price, exemption and limit is read off the state wildlife agency's own pages and price lists. When those are silent, we name the other source we used and flag it.
  2. Dated, section by section. Each section shows the day it was last checked and which license year its prices cover.
  3. Rechecked every month. Each source page is compared with last month's copy. If it has changed, someone reads it again before the date moves forward.

Where we couldn't confirm something, the page says so. More about this site · Found a mistake? Let us know.

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