Get ready to catch more fish with these 20 best fishing lures. Picking the right artificial lures for every technique in different water conditions can make you more useful than you ever know. A fishing lure is an artificial bait used to attract fish. With so many different shapes, sizes, and colors, how would you know which one you should choose to get better accuracy and more caught fish?
When it comes to artificial lures, it is all about understanding the fish species that you want to catch. For starters, here are some of the essential lures when fishing in different bodies of water.
- Plugs
- Jigs
- Spinnerbaits
- Spoon
- Soft Plastics
- Flies
However, it is not enough that you know that different kinds of artificial lures. So, let us help you examine the most common types of artificial lures and catch more fish in no time. Whether you will fish on freshwater or saltwater, we will give you the best fishing lure to use on several conditions.
Pros And Cons Using Fishing Lures
The most popular alternative to live bait is a fishing lure. Before diving into the different types of fishing lures, let’s look at some advantages and drawbacks of using them compared to using live bait.
| PROS | CONS |
| Lures let you cast by using live bait. | Lures are usually more expensive than live baits. |
| Lures are less challenging to use than live bait. | Lures can snuggle on the structure underwater. |
| Lures are better for capturing and releasing, as the fish are less likely to gulp the whole hook. | Use of lures allows you to move them always to attract the fish. |
| Using lures helps you to target a species more precisely. | Some lures require significant use of abilities, making it harder for beginners. |
| Lures are easy to interchange. | Lures are less effective in colder waters than bait. |
Fishing lures will be your best friend if you are using them correctly. In freshwater and saltwater, they are equally successful and can be used to capture a wide range of fish species. There are, of course, several different types of lures for fishing. Meanwhile, you can learn what is the difference between a fishing lure and bait here.
6 Common Fishing Lures To Catch More Fish
There is nothing like having a pull at the line’s edge. If you haven’t made an inventory on the ol’ tackle box, the time to do it is now. Let us break down some of the best fishing lures to always have in scope. Artificial lures come in such a wide variety that they can capture any fish species at any time, so here are a few of the all-time top lures.
1.Plugs
Plugs or crankbaits are shaped and colored hard plastic fishing lures, to resemble baitfish or other prey. They are made of a solid or hollow piece of plastic, with the front attached to a thin sheet of metal or plastic. There are occasions when the lip is flexible to make the lure wobble. Regardless, plugs can float, sink, dive or hover, depending on the design.
Fishing with Plugs
Most plugs float on the surface of the water or hang in the water, but when retrieved, they dive sharply. You can take advantage of this with a series of reel-and-stop movements which will imitate live baitfish behaviour. Adjust the twitching intervals for variation and the spinning pace.
2.Jigs
Jigs, on the other hand, have a weighted head and on the other, a handle. Jigs are generally considered to be one of the most popular types of fishing lures, with either a feather skirt or plastic grub. Jigs sink quickly, due to their weight. They are best for bottom feeders.
Fishing with Jigs
Throw it out and let it fall to the floor, to take advantage of the jig weight. You will know that the moment you see the line go slack, your jig sunk. Start jigging if this happens. Raise your rod (slightly), then retrieve the line as you drop it down again. Experiment with various velocities as well as broad and small moves to see what works best.
3.Spinnerbait
Spinnerbait lures are a little different since they travel across the water horizontally. Depending on the targeted depth and organisms, they come in multiple shapes and colors. Spinnerbaits come with a skirted handle and on the other hand one or two metal blades that turn like a propeller. Moreover, it creates vibration and color reflection, which mimics minnows and other baitfish reasonably accurately. These lures are suitable for catching species such as Bass, Perch and Pike.
Fishing with Spinnerbaits
If the water in which you fish is unmistakable, pulling your spinnerbait just below the surface is a perfect way to draw game-fish. The spinning blades would have a significant visual impact and are expected to attract much fish. Only hold the rod high to make sure the edges are below the surface. If the water’s turbid, it won’t work. Attach a sinker and count on your spinnerbait lure vibrations.
4.Spoons
The spoons are flat and metal lures that are concave. Spoon lures got their name because they were just that, initially – spoons with cut off handles. The concave form makes them shine and wobble as they pass through the water. The broader the curve, the bigger the wobble. A wobbling lure resembles wounded baitfish, and this is something that can’t be said no to game fish.
Fishing with Spoons
You may cast or troll a lure to a spoon. Anglers typically go under the target zone for 10 to 20 feet for casting and then retrieve the lure right through. Make sure you take a close look at the moving spoon to assess the required velocity of recovery. If the spoon is going too rapidly or too slowly, it will not wobble properly. Same is valid for trolling. Trolling with spoons usually requires downriggers to set the desired profundity.
5.Soft Plastics
Soft plastic lures are flexible rubber baits which mimic a range of aquatic criteria. From minnows, worms, and crawfish to lizards and frogs, there can be anything. For Bass fishing soft plastics are expected for most anglers.
Fishing with Soft Plastic Lures
Make sure you select the right soft plastic size and colour. The lure’s color should match in with the setting, naturally. Go on a clear day with brighter plastics but stay away from when the heavens are overcast. Wounded creatures tend to swim in spurts, and soft plastics will allow you to mimic that movement very accurately. Let the lure sink downwards, and twitch your rod a couple of times. If you don’t get a hookup, pull up the lure in a couple of jerky movements.
6.Flies
Flies are historically a type of fishing lure used in fly fishing. They can sometimes be used in spin fishing, too, thanks to the development of new materials. Fly fishing lures are composed of a single hook and a net. These lures are tied to imitate insects, crustaceans, or other prey using furs, feathers, or beads.
10 Best Saltwater Fishing
No bait? No problem. Whether you’re doing offshore or inshore saltwater fishing, here are the ten best lures that you can use. From saltwater jigs to the best topwater fishing lures, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive list. So, let us continue our list of the best artificial lures for saltwater.
7.Bucktail Jig
A good old-fashioned bucktail jig is hard to beat, no matter where you are and what kind of water you are in for fishing. Anglers will catch these in both shallow and deep water using a variety of retrieves. The design’s simplicity offers anglers an extensive range of flexibility when it comes to fishing with Bucktail Jigs.
8.Crank Baits
Small beads on the inside of these hard baits rattle to attract, and their action screams “quick meal.” They’re easy to work with and are particularly deadly in off-color water.
9.Flutter Jigs
Crafted to be fished with a vertical walk-the-dog movement, they are both successful on fall as well as on retrieve. In any tackle box, the distinctive motion, and flexibility, makes this important.
10.Hammered Spoon
Hammered Spoons can run relatively shallow, robust, and conventional like those regular casting spoons. It gives the same appeal and all the usefulness and qualities of a spoon in deeper water.
11.Lipped Plugs
Lipped Plugs draw the most strikes erratically; at other times, predators are more drawn by a steady swimming motion. By altering the retrieve, it is possible to twitch lipped plugs to look like a wounded baitfish, or like a forage trying to get away.
12.Poppers
Poppers are often the best bet when you need to lift a ruckus for drawing fish to a surface popper. Most predators prefer prey which is caught quickly. When erratically collected, a popper’s sound attracts attention and looks like a simple meal, which can’t be overlooked by game fish.
13.Sinking Twitch Baits
Slow sinking twitch baits can be the ticket to success if your target species doesn’t want to eat on the surface. These lures dart from left to right with a slight twitch of the rod on the retrieve to imitate wounded baitfish, an easy target for hungry fish.
14.Soft Plastics
This large family of artificial lures mimics any forage fish or crustacean in the ocean, in almost infinite configurations. For unprecedented flexibility, they can be rigged weedless or with lead heads, such as shrimps, eels, finfish, worms, grubs or simple attractors.
15.Top Water JerkBait
There is nothing better than working jerk bait with a walk-the-dog motion on the surface of the water and watching a big, violent fish jump on it. Topwater jerk baits for this form of retrieval are tailor-made.
16.Clarkspoon
Clark spoons have been excellent on many species including Spanish Mackerel, Reds, Trout, Dolphin, Bonita, Black Fin Tuna and Cobia have been fine. No matter whether jigging, casting or trolling, these lures are useful.
Freshwater Fishing Lures
How can a fake or plastic bait be more appealing than something real? Lures have two significant advantages. Anglers can cover a lot more water with artificial lures than they can with bait. Also, lures can trigger strikes from inactive fish. Many lures are designed to vibrate or flash to elicit these reflex strikes. So, here are some of the essential freshwater fishing lures.
17.Soft Plastic
Soft plastic baits are handy to capture lures and have come a long way since their invention in the 1960’s. Freshwater baits work well overall and come in a wide range of sizes and types.
18.Rigging Soft Plastic Baits
You can rig soft plastic baits in several ways. You can use a Texas rig that involves rigging of plastic worms to be weedless on special hooks. You can also rig soft plastic lures on a jig head. Regardless, soft plastic baits work on smaller panfish baits. Larger plastic baits, however, are incredibly effective on jig heads, particularly for walleye and small-mouth bass.
19.Freshwater Jigs
Jigs mimic a soft plastic trap that is placed on a jig head. The difference is that a jig is an integral unit. Moreover, it comes along with a jig head and some dressing over the line. In the sea, those look very real. Synthetic hair is also typical. Some come with rubber legs that are enticingly essential in the water.
20.Freshwater Plugs
Plugs are hard coats which were once wood and are now almost all plastic. They also resemble baitfish. Several, however, are imitations of crawfish and others. On the surface there are several connectors. There are branded plugs called “topwater.” Others have a lip that allows them to fall in the water: May cast or troll plugs.
Plugs are simple to cast. Most have an action built in to make it easy to use. On the negative side, the cost of the plugs is high. They also have treble hooks which are harder to cast or unhooking fish. They’re handy to fish though, and a lot of fun!
21.Freshwater Spoons
Spoons are a primary lure which has been around for quite a long time. They’re a bent piece of metal with a hook in the back. Properly built, they enticingly wobble and shake, sending out light and vibration. Spoons travel a long way and are user friendly to inexperienced anglers.
Anglers should use a spooned swivel to avoid twisting of the thread. Spoons can not only be cast but when trolled, they are incredibly useful. For decades, walleye, trout, and salmon anglers caught fish with them.
9 Tips For Picking the Best Fishing Lure
If you don’t pick the right lure for the job, you won’t catch as many fish as you can. Choosing the right fishing lure is easier said than done, as a zillion variables come into play, ranging from weather to water conditions. So here are some tips for consistently choosing the right fishing lure.
Tip #1 – Matching Of Lure
Align the profile of the lure with the prey species that dominate. Where significant, skinny silver-sides prevail, pencil-poppers are typically a top maker, with a thin, slender profile. But lures like plastic shad, with their equally in-depth profile, are likely to be safer in areas where deep-bodied bunkers swim.
Tip #2 – Choosing The Right Lip
If fish is directed toward a thermocline, lipped plugs are killers. You must, of course, pick one with the right lip — one that dives to the thermocline’s approximate depth, and stays there during the retrieval. Do that, and your lure will always be in the strike zone.
Tip #3 – Lure Color
Make sure that the color of the lure matches the water color. It sounds weird that green colors will work better in green waters, and that blue lures will work well in blue water, but this is typically true. Normally. Color-matched lures will not always be the hottest of the day, but they are more popular than other color options and can still act as a starting point for colors and patterns to be chosen.
Tip #4 – Vibrations
Choose lures that create vibrations in discolored or dirty water while you are in. These vibrations help you catch your lure home long before you can even see it. Rattle-like lures are a great bet, especially in water with two feet or less visibility.
Tip #5 – Know When To Use Rattling Lures
Don’t pick rattling lures to gin-clear water. For some reason, rattles often tend to spook them when fish are keyed in on hunting through eyesight.
Tip #6 – Lures With Unique Action
If you’re teasing, make sure you’re using a lure that delivers its action. A lipped crankbait, paddle-tail, or screw-tail lure would be the right choice for anyone.
Tip #7 – Lures With Good Color Contrast
Choose a lure with a strong contrasting colour. If you look at the essence of fish, most of them have a contrast — so the fish are used to seeing it on their prey. Don’t forget to take some essential baits and “hot-rod” them in the mix.
Tip #8 – Heavy Lures For A Windy Day
In windy conditions, select the heavy lures. Even if you have to step up your recovery to hold the lure in the strike zone, it’s typically the right decision to go more massive as it rafts. It helps you to help maintain the stress on the line, which tends to get blown into a big bow, meaning you’ll be able to respond to strikes and feel downward.
Tip #9 – Stick With Larger Lures In Colder Water
Fish are looking for reduced energy consumption to get the full amount of calories. It also means they won’t go running after a small offering in cold water when they save resources.
Live Bait Vs. Artificial Lures
Using artificial lures is the most excellent quality that you can reuse all over again. Live baits, on the other hand, are easy to use but often get lost. And you’re going to end up buying something that can get pricey. When it comes to price, live baits are cheaper compared with fairly costly artificial lures. More artificial lures require better-quality tackling and a higher degree of competence.
Between live baits and artificial lures, it’s all about knowing when to use and of them and throwing a fish attraction stuff. Some anglers will tell you baits perform best – live and dead alike. Indeed, these baits will carry everything your target fish want from their prey’s scent, color, taste and representation. The main challenge when using live baits is to keep them alive and fresh, which could take some effort.