The fur market is not what it used to be, and it probably never will be what it was in the boom days. That said, fur still has value and particular items are selling quite well even in the scaled down modern fur industry. After a number of state fur auctions and the Fur Harvesters March sale, we have a really good idea of what fur is worth, and what to expect moving forward.
In short, the utility fur items, which trappers harvest in the greatest numbers nationwide, have very little demand and prices are poor. That’s because most of the global fur trade is on its knees, with economic and demographic woes in many of the fur consuming regions of the world. The specialty fur items – species that are less commonly caught and always available in smaller numbers – are doing very well. There is still demand for these items, and it’s more difficult to flood these niche markets with oversupply.
Let’s get into the details.
Beaver prices have been elevated for the past several years due to the hot fashion trend favoring cowboy hats, whose felt is made from beaver fur. That market is starting to exhaust itself. Demand is waning, particularly with the end of the hit TV show “Yellowstone”, which had every American adult wanting to be a cowboy. In addition, felt makers bought a lot of beaver pelts during the boom and many realized they overpaid for lower quality. In some auctions, particularly in 2023, the lower quality beaver pelts sold for almost the same price as the best. Today, the better beaver pelts are averaging $20-25. While size has always been an important driver of price, fur quality has become critical to the value received for a beaver pelt. Lower quality pelts are likely to bring $10-15 moving forward, with a deep discount for smaller sizes.
Demand for otter is steady, with the lower beaver harvest meaning fewer otters are being taken incidental to beaver trapping activities. Averages are in the $20-30 range.
Muskrats are almost unsellable right now. Better muskrats are going for around $2, if you can find somebody who wants them.
The market for coyote pelts has been – in a more extreme case than beaver – the victim of a changing fashion trend. Nobody wants fur lined hooded parkas anymore, which is where most of the coyote pelts were being used. Better western coyotes, are averaging $20-30, with Easterns and Southerns around $10-15 tops.
Better raccoon pelts are sellable, but at very low levels. Some of the best quality pelts have commanded $10-15 regionally, but the bulk of the harvest is selling for $5 apiece on average.
Red fox prices have been slowly creeping up from their decades-long slump. The low harvest has helped keep prices reasonable, with $10 for the lower quality sections and $20-25 for the better quality pelts. Fur Harvesters offered less than 5,000 red fox pelts at their March 2025 auction, which is kind of mind blowing compared to what the harvest once was.
Bobcats continue to sell well, and top quality spotted Western cats seem to have returned to their glory days from a few years back. These have been consistently averaging more than $500 at western state auctions, and the collection of Westerns at Fur Harvesters sold for almost $800! Most of the other sections of bobcats are in the $100-200 range, which is really encouraging. Bobcat harvest is usually lower when coyote prices are low, which is undoubtedly helping elevate the price. The super wealthy aren’t having the economic troubles we see in the middle class worldwide, and they are the ones who buy the high end bobcat coats.
Wild mink prices have been good as well, likely due to the low supply of ranch mink that had flooded the market for much of the recent decade, most of which have finally made their way through the pipeline. Most mink collections have been averaging better than $10, with the better collections inching close to $20! This is nothing compared to the mink prices of the old days, but better than we’ve seen in a long time.
Skunk prices are incredibly high. This is an item that is really booming in the otherwise poor fur market. The recent Fur Harvesters collection averaged almost $30!
Weasels are selling well, with an average of about $7.50 overall.
Marten are another niche fur item that is doing very well in this market. Almost 30,000 marten pelts sold at Fur Harvesters for an overall average of $70. The top quality marten pelts from northern latitudes dropped a little in price, but the lower end of the quality spectrum improved dramatically.
Canada lynx are averaging in excess of $100.
Fisher are also doing well, with an overall average of $55.
Grey fox are commanding averages of around $20.
We’re truly in a bifurcated fur market these days, with the traditional bread and butter species that make up the bulk of the North American catch seeing poor demand and low prices, but the specialty species in lower supply booming in price. So what does this mean? For the market overall, it isn’t good news – suppliers, lure makers, dealers, and other trapping industry participants rely on the bread and butter to keep the industry moving. But for trappers in northern areas who can harvest species not common in most places, the market is pretty good. And for their sake, I hope it holds up a little longer.
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