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Utilization measurements of grass are often used to guide rangeland management decisions. However, estimating utilization can be difficult to an untrained eye. Two common techniques to estimate utilization are ocular estimation and using height-weight relationships to deduce utilization based on reduced height. We compared these two ways to estimate utilization on individual bunchgrass species in sagebrush-steppe ecosystems at four study sites in Southern Idaho. Study sites consisted of Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata�subsp.�wyomingensis) and low sagebrush (Artemisia arbuscula) overstory with an understory of perennial bunchgrasses. Observers measured maximum droop height and estimated utilization in 5% increments of individual grasses. We also collected ten ungrazed samples of eight perennial bunchgrass species: Indian ricegrass (Achnatherum hymenoides), Thurber�s needlegrass (Achnatherum thurberianum), crested wheatgrass (Agropyron cristatum), Bottlebrush squirreltail (Elymus elymoides), Idaho fescue (Festuca idahoensis), needle and thread (Hesperostipa comata), Sandberg bluegrass (Poa secunda), and bluebunch wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata). In the lab, we recorded the maximum height from ground level, clipped biomass at 10% increments of the max height, dried, and weighed each sample. We created height-weight curves for each of the eight grass species. We then used these curves to quantify utilization of grazed grasses in the field and compared ocular estimates to the quantified measures. �We also compared these curves to height-weight utilization gauges used as a standard method by agencies.