Louisiana mineral rights
What Louisiana mineral and royalty interests are worth, which basins and counties we buy in, the state-specific factors that move your value, and how to sell directly with no commission. Every figure is an estimate subject to verification of your specific interest.
Last updated June 2026.
What are Louisiana mineral rights worth?
Louisiana is a major natural gas state, anchored by the Haynesville Shale in the northwest parishes of Caddo, DeSoto, Bossier, Red River, and Sabine. Because Haynesville is a gas play, Louisiana mineral values track natural gas prices and Gulf Coast LNG export demand rather than oil. Producing royalties are valued on the standard income multiple, roughly 36 to 72 times the average monthly check. Every figure is an estimate subject to verification of your specific interest.
Free written valuation
What are your Louisiana minerals worth?
Tell us about your interest and where to send the written valuation. It is free, there is no obligation, and this is an estimate, not an offer. Email is required so we can send your report. Phone is optional.
Louisiana's mineral story is natural gas, and right now that story is improving. The northwest corner of the state, the parishes of Caddo, DeSoto, Bossier, Red River, and Sabine, sits over the Haynesville Shale, the third-largest gas play in the country, and demand from Gulf Coast LNG export terminals is pulling rigs back into the field. Louisiana also has its own distinct legal system, the only state built on civil law rather than common law, so it uses parishes instead of counties and has its own rules for how mineral rights are held, transferred, and even how they can lapse if unused. That legal difference matters when transferring inherited interests, so local counsel is especially worth it here.
Louisiana oil and gas by the numbers
We cover 54 counties and parishes in Louisiana, with public state-commission records showing 35,420 active wells across 54 of them. The most active operators by well count are Enervest Operating, LLC. , Caddo Parish Holdings LLC , Three Sisters Petroleum, INC. , Texas Petroleum Investment Company , and XTO Energy INC. . Producing formations on record in Louisiana include Austin Chalk, Bossier, Cotton Valley, Frio, Haynesville, Hosston, Miocene sands, Monroe Gas Rock, Pettet, Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa Marine Shale, Wilcox.
How Louisiana minerals are valued
Producing interests anywhere are valued on a multiple of the income they pay: roughly 36 to 72 times your average monthly royalty check, the same as 3 to 6 times your annual royalty. Average your last three to six checks, then multiply. Haynesville is a gas play, so Louisiana mineral values track natural gas prices and the LNG demand outlook rather than oil. Non-producing Haynesville minerals have changed hands at roughly $3,000 to $7,000 per net mineral acre, and more in active drilling areas, while producing royalties are valued on the standard income multiple of roughly 36 to 72 times the average monthly check. Louisiana's minimum royalty on state leases is around 20 percent, above the old one-eighth, which lifts revenue per net mineral acre. Louisiana's civil-law system also gives mineral servitudes their own transfer and prescription rules, so confirming clean title matters. Every figure is an estimate subject to verification of your specific interest.
For the full method and a free on-screen estimate, see what are my mineral rights worth.
What makes Louisiana different
- Gas play, LNG-driven: The Haynesville is natural gas, so values track gas prices and Gulf Coast LNG export demand, not oil. EIA projects Haynesville production climbing again on that demand.
- Parishes, not counties: Louisiana uses parishes. The core Haynesville parishes are Caddo, DeSoto, Bossier, Red River, and Sabine in the northwest of the state.
- Civil-law mineral rules: Louisiana is the only civil-law state. Mineral rights are held as servitudes with their own transfer and prescription rules, which can differ sharply from other states, so local counsel is especially valuable for inherited interests.
Basins and counties we buy in Louisiana
Mineral value is local. Choose your basin, then your county or parish, for the local value context and the questions owners there ask most.
Haynesville Shale
The Haynesville Shale of northwest Louisiana and East Texas is the third-largest natural gas play in the United States, and demand from Gulf Coast LNG export terminals is pulling rigs back into the field. If you own minerals or royalties under Caddo, DeSoto, Bossier, Red River, or Sabine parish, or Harrison, Panola, or Shelby county on the Texas side, you sit in the field analysts watch most closely for the next gas-price cycle.
Gulf Coast Basin
The onshore Gulf Coast Basin runs across South Louisiana and the Texas Gulf Coast, one of the oldest and most varied oil and gas provinces in the country. It produces conventional oil and gas from the Wilcox, Frio, and Miocene sands and from the many salt-dome traps that ring the coast, alongside newer shale and chalk trends like the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale and the Austin Chalk. If you own minerals or royalties along the Gulf Coast, your value depends heavily on which interval and trap your tract produces from, because a long-producing conventional field and a recent shale or chalk well are valued very differently.
Why owners in Louisiana sell
Most owners who sell are not in distress. They want certainty instead of a check that rises and falls with commodity prices and well decline, they are settling an estate among several heirs, or they live far from the basin and would rather hold cash than manage a fractional interest. Selling trades future income for a sum now, and the right answer depends entirely on your situation. We will tell you honestly when holding is the better move.
How to sell Louisiana minerals the right way
Know your range before you talk to any buyer, ask every buyer to quote per net royalty acre so offers are comparable, and ask directly whether the offer accounts for undeveloped drilling upside. For the full walkthrough, see how to sell mineral rights, and if you inherited the interest, start with our guide for heirs.
Louisiana mineral rights questions
- How much are Louisiana mineral rights worth?
- Louisiana minerals are mostly Haynesville gas, so value tracks natural gas prices and LNG demand. Non-producing minerals have changed hands at roughly $3,000 to $7,000 per net mineral acre, and more in active drilling areas, while producing royalties are valued at roughly 36 to 72 times the average monthly check. This is an estimate, not an offer.
- Where can I sell mineral rights in Louisiana?
- Ironwood Royalty buys Louisiana mineral and royalty interests directly from owners as a principal buyer, focused on the Haynesville Shale parishes in the northwest of the state, with no broker commission and an honest value range up front.
- Why are Louisiana mineral rights different from other states?
- Louisiana is the only state on a civil-law system rather than common law. Mineral rights are held as servitudes with their own rules for transfer and for lapsing if unused, and the state uses parishes instead of counties. Those differences especially affect inherited interests, so a Louisiana attorney is worth consulting before transferring title.
See what your Louisiana minerals could be worth
Run a free estimate for an honest on-screen range, then talk it through with a real person. An estimate, not an offer, and never any pressure.
- ✓ No commission, ever
- ✓ An honest range up front
- ✓ No obligation, no pressure