For ordinary dispersed camping on BLM land, you almost certainly do not need a permit. The BLM’s own camping page, read August 20, 2026, puts it in one line under Permits: “Most areas don’t require permits or reservations. Some regions may require permits for large groups or campfires (for example, California Campfire Permit).”
That is the answer to the question most people are actually asking. The permit they have heard about is a different animal.
What a Special Recreation Permit is for
The BLM’s permits and fees page, read the same day, defines it: Special Recreation Permits “are authorizations for commercial use, competitive events, group activities, recreation events, and providing vending services or supplies associated with recreation events.”
Read that list again. A guide service running paid trips. A race. An organized group event. A vendor selling food at one. You parking a truck on a two-track and sleeping in it is not on the list, and the page does not put it there.
The same page also separates two fee types that get confused with permits. Standard amenity fees apply at “developed day use areas, visitor centers and some National Conservation Areas.” Expanded amenity fees are what “developed campgrounds charge.” Those are site fees, not permission to be on public land.
Where “most areas” bites
“Most areas don’t require permits” is not “no area does,” and the BLM does not maintain a national list of the ones that do. The exception lives on the unit’s own page.
Alabama Hills is the clean example. The BLM’s Alabama Hills page, read August 20, 2026, states: “Camping permits are now required for designated camping in the Alabama Hills. Permits are free and do not guarantee a campsite.” It adds that “All camping is first come, first serve.” A free permit is still a permit, and showing up without one is still showing up without one.
Campfire permits are their own layer, separate from camping. The national page names California’s by name. Having a camping permit, or not needing one, tells you nothing about whether you are allowed a fire.
What to do before you go
Look up the specific place on blm.gov and read that page, not the national overview. If the unit is quiet about permits, call the field office and ask directly: do I need anything to camp here, and do I need anything to have a fire here. Those are two questions, not one.
Then read the sign at the road. The posted sign and whatever the field office tells you today beat this page, the national page, and any app.
If what you actually want to know is how long you can stay once you are there, that is a different rule set and it varies by state office. We worked through it in the 14-day rule and the move-on distance. Our BLM camping rules guide covers the rest, and the California free camping page is where the Alabama Hills sits.