Blog · October 13, 2026 · Montana
Using the Yellowstone County GIS Map
A practical guide to the Yellowstone County GIS map: the official link, towns and land across the county, property lines, and where deeds are recorded.
Main page: Yellowstone County, MT GIS & Parcel Viewer (official map link, Yellowstone County facts and neighboring maps).
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Buying land in Montana without looking at the parcel map is like buying a car without opening the hood. For property around Billings, the Yellowstone County GIS map is free and public.
This guide walks through the official link, the kinds of land you'll find around Broadview, and what to do when the map and the ground don't agree.
What the map covers, from Billings to the back roads
Besides Billings, which serves as the county seat, the map covers Laurel and Broadview. Out in the countryside, Acton, Ballantine, and Custer appear as small knots of lots along the road network. For scale: roughly 2,633 square miles of land and an estimated 170,843 residents as of 2023, per the Census Bureau. That density means a real mix on the map: platted neighborhoods near Billings, and larger tracts on the rural roads. On the parcel layer, Pompeys Pillar National Monument shows up as public ground, and the private tracts along its edges are worth checking line by line.
Opening the Yellowstone County GIS map
For parcels from Broadview to Lockwood, the Yellowstone County parcel viewer is the county's own public map. The quickest search in Yellowstone County is usually the parcel number from a tax bill; owner and address searches work too. Our Yellowstone County listing carries the same link plus neighboring maps.
How to find property lines in Yellowstone County
On rural tracts near Lockwood, the parcel lines can drift from the fences on the ground, sometimes by more than a few feet. Square-ish tracts around Billings are no accident: Montana land was surveyed into sections, and deeds still describe land that way. Corner pins, a recorded plat and a Montana licensed surveyor beat any line on a screen.
Where Yellowstone County deeds and plats are kept
Every line on the Yellowstone County map traces back to a recorded deed or plat, and the county's recording office keeps those documents. Recording offices go by different titles from state to state, including register of deeds, recorder, county clerk and clerk of court; the official Yellowstone County website names the one that handles deeds. If the Yellowstone County parcel record shows an instrument number, that number is the shortcut to the recorded deed.
Who uses the Yellowstone County parcel map
Here's who tends to use it in Yellowstone County. If you're after rural acreage near Broadview, the map shows which tracts are big enough and which ones border paved roads or water. Investors comb the area around Broadview for unbuilt parcels and absentee owners, two clues that a tract might be for sale. Hunters near Broadview check the lines before opening day so a blood trail or a retrieve doesn't cross onto a neighbor's ground uninvited.
Private and public hunting ground in Yellowstone County
Hunters working the country toward the Rosebud County line can use the parcel map to put a name on every woodlot and field. Around Pompeys Pillar National Monument, private tracts can press right up against the public boundary, so check the lines before you walk in. Season dates and license rules come from the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. A landowner near Lockwood is more likely to say yes to a hunter who names the exact parcel and offers a phone number.
Work and land use in Yellowstone County
The Census Bureau's County Business Patterns counted 5,935 business establishments in Yellowstone County in 2022, and the largest groups were construction, retail trade, and health care and social assistance. Measured against national shares, oil and gas extraction, air transportation, and petroleum and coal products manufacturing are overrepresented in Yellowstone County. In Yellowstone County, minerals are often severed from the surface, so the owner on the parcel map may not own what's underneath.
Acreage and vacant lot search
A vacant-land search near Billings, step by step:
- With imagery on, zoom to the edge of Laurel where subdivisions give way to open ground.
- For the open ground around Billings, copy the owner, acreage and mailing address into a simple spreadsheet.
- Confirm legal access. In Yellowstone County, as anywhere, a parcel with no road frontage depends on an easement.
- Assessed values lag the market, but comparing tracts near Lockwood still shows which ones the county rates higher.
- Ask the local offices serving Laurel about building permits and septic rules before you buy.
A note on timing and acreage
A lot in Broadview that sold last month may still show the previous owner on the map. The acreage on a Broadview record is what the tax roll uses, and a survey can come out different.
Common questions
Is there a printed plat book for Yellowstone County?
Whether a current printed edition exists for Yellowstone County varies; the free online map covering Billings and the rest of the county is the dependable option.
How do I look up a property owner in Yellowstone County, MT?
Owner names for parcels from Billings to Laurel are on the Yellowstone County parcel viewer; search by address or click the map.
What is the county seat of Yellowstone County?
Yellowstone County's county seat is Billings.
Can I use the Yellowstone County map to hunt private land?
The map tells you who owns the woods near Lockwood; the owner decides whether you can hunt there.
Where do property lines run on a Yellowstone County, MT lot?
Find the tract near Billings on the parcel map, note the legal description, and compare it with the recorded deed. If you need certainty, a Montana licensed surveyor can stake the corners.
Open the official Yellowstone County, MT parcel map Yellowstone County in the Platbookmapper directory
Not a survey. County GIS and tax parcel maps are assessment and planning layers. They are not a substitute for a recorded plat, deed, or licensed survey, especially for fences, setbacks, or boundary disputes.