Fishing is undoubtedly one of America’s most beloved pastimes, and some of the world’s most abundant fisheries can be found right here. However, with so many exceptional options available, anglers wrestle with the same question: Where to start?
FishingBooker, the world’s largest platform for booking fishing trips, determined the Best US Fishing States list by combining their data with other publicly available sources. Florida and Michigan shared the top spot with the same number of points!
Some interesting findings from this study show that the top half of the list is dominated by states on the Atlantic Coast. The study also found that out of the 25 bottom states, 18 are landlocked.
Why did Florida rank number 1?
Florida has one of the highest rankings on the list in the category of Anglers’ Interest, which makes sense since it’s the most famous saltwater destination in the country.
There’s an incredible variety of angling trips on offer, so the prices are just as varied, and there are thousands of charters that can take you out. This allowed Florida to have a strong score in the Financial category as well.
The Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico hug over 8,400 miles of coastline, with more game fish than we can count. Whether it’s inshore royalty like Redfish, Tarpon, and Snook or offshore giants like King Mackerel, Grouper, Snapper, and Sailfish, Florida has it all with its year-round action.
The Best US Fishing States in 2023, top 10 list:
=1. Florida
=1. Michigan
3. Delaware
4. Alaska
5. Hawaii
=6. Maine
=6. Maryland
8. Rhode Island
9. Louisiana
10. Wisconsin
Methodology
FishingBooker’s extensive research of the US’s fishing opportunities yielded 17 different ranking criteria. Out of these, five criteria were based on FishingBooker’s internal data from hundreds of thousands of fishing trips, reviews, and reports in the past year. The remaining twelve criteria come from publicly available data sources.
Once the criteria were established, they were grouped into four separate categories – Anglers’ Interest, Facilities, Financial, and Geography. Once the scores were calculated, weighted, and summed up, we got the ultimate list of US states with their fishing potential ranked from best to worst.
The complete list of the Best US Fishing States for 2023 can be found here. On this page, you can also read more about the criteria, research methodology and key takeaways.
About FishingBooker
FishingBooker is the world’s largest platform for connecting anglers and fishing guides, with nearly 40,000 fishing trips available in more than 2,000 destinations worldwide.