Discover the best fishing lures in 2024! Elevate your fishing experience with our essential guide to this year’s best picks for a successful catch.
In fishing, it takes a lot of effort to know what is the best fishing lure. With a single goal of catching a fish, live bait is an option. However, artificial lures come in handy if you want to catch a specific fish.
Rather than spending hours trying to find the perfect lure, we’ve gone ahead and taken care of it for you. We have pulled out some of the best fishing lures in 2024 based on market demand.
To start, let’s first discuss what a fishing lure is.
What are Fishing Lures?
A fishing lure is used to tie at the end of the line to attract and catch a fish. Each lure has different colors, all have different purposes. Most of the fishing lures appear to be injured, dying, or fast fish. They are made of wood, plastic, metal, and other materials to catch the attention of fish.
Types of Fishing Lures
- Top Waters – Top water lures work perfectly with aggressive fishes. Aggressive fishes tend to appear during sunrise or sunsets or in areas with heavy cover.
- Suspending Lures – Suspending lures offer straight retrieval with a twitching motion which works effectively with a variety of species.
- Jigs – Jigs come in different shapes and sizes. Thus, it can be used in different settings and applications. However, they tend to get snagged easily especially when fishing at the bottom.
- Soft Plastics – Soft plastics can be used with jigs as trailers. These plastic lures tend to attract bigger fishes with its fish scent and some have vibration features that attract fishes to bite.
50 Best Fishing Lures
All Around Fishing Lures
Berkley Gulp Minnow
Many anglers were impressed by this lure when it was released by Berkley. This lure features a patented scent formula which they marketed as better than live baits. Gulp Minnows are available in different sizes, so you don’t have to worry about not having the right fit for your choice of species.
This lure is easy to work with. Simply pin one on a jig and bounce it off on water. If you are aiming for crappies, hang this lure afloat and let it drift. For snappers you need to send it down by sticking one on a bucktail jig.
The only downside of this lure is the price. But, as effective it may seem, many anglers are still willing to pay.
Bucktail Jig
A bucktail jig lure is one of the staples. If you have this on your box, you are likely to catch any fish. These lures can work on cold months, by letting it down at the bottom letting the hair breathe, scoring bites. However, when the water is warm, have the lure swim in different parts of the water to catch small fishes.
Eppinger Dardevle Spoon
This lure features an iconic red and white color. The red produced giant pike and the white color represents a pork strip. With Dardevle you can quickly reel and have it skimming below the surface to let it fall over deep water.
Heddon Super Spook
Super spooks feature loud rattles or noises that attract small-mouth fishes to bigger fishes. Due to the unique sound this lure produced, many anglers credit the lure. Depending on the speed you are going for, you can make a super spook take long and slow strides or a zigzag movement to mimic baitfish. The hook included can turn and pivot enticing fish.
Johnson Original Beetle Spin
This lure is a spinner bait featuring a jighead. Beetle Spin has nothing so special to offer thus, it is priced at $2. With the price, you can’t expect much of its durability, but this lure definitely catches bass, trout, bluegills and others.
Johnson Silver Minnow
A silver Minnow features an ultra-strong hook that is perfect for catching bull reds and gator trouts. This lure is also designed to work well with trailers, available in a variety of weights sizes.
Keitech Swing Impact
This lure is made by Hayashi, a pro angler. Something unique about this lure is that it is injected by calamari juice. Hence, the scent. It is composed of supple material, which allows for harder kicking tail and swings during retrieval.
Mann’s Little George Spoon
The Little George Spoon features a tear-drop shaped body that sinks like a boulder. This is why many anglers prefer using this lure for fishing white bass, crappies, and trout. Unlike other lures, the tail blade of Little George spins and vibrates even when you are reeling for a re-drop. To simply put it, this lure always works to attract fishes.
Mister Twister Curly Tail Grub
This Grub is easy to work with and is available in different colors. Black is for catching leeches, orange for crayfish, white for squid and pink for shrimps.
Rapala Original Floating Minnow
The design of the Rapala has been tinkering since the 30’s. Upon observation, big fishes love small wounded or injured fishes thus the design of the Rapala lure.
Bass Fishing Lures
Basstrix Paddle Fish
This lure features hollow bodied paddle tails made for pronounced swimming. It has a side to side shimmy with tails kicking hard at the back. This alone made this lure an effective bait. Another advantage is that it can be used in different settings.
Fred Arbogast Hula Popper
First marketed as topwater popper made to imitate frogs. Aside from it’s innovative appearance, this lure was credited for “hula skirt”. Hula skirt gives a lifelike look and feel to the lure, which tempts fish to bite.
Bobby Garland Original Gitzit
This lure is made to be unique with a blend of different concepts. Bedding bass loves the size of this lure. A technique used for this lure that works effectively with bedding bass is flipping and casting.
Gene Larew Salt Craw
This lure immediately attracts anglers due to it’s plastic hybrid craw appearance. The most liked feature of this lure is the ability to pour salt as part of the bait. This lure proven it’s effectiveness in catching giant fish.
Lunker Lure Buzzer
The lure buzzer has a skirted buzzer that attracts large bass. It has a squeal sounding like a mouse chirp which is discovered to be appealing for big bass.
Lunker City Slug-go
This lure was considered the first soft-plastic lure that elicited reactions from bass. With Slug-go anglers can target bass in the middle of the water column.
Norman DD 22
The Norman DD22 is known to bait down fishes in deep water at around 15 feet. This comes with a wide range of colors with simple design available.
Bill Lewis Rat-I-Trap
This lure creates a new category to bait, which are now called “lipless crankbaits”. The design was very appealing but the best of it all is it can cast a country mile.
Smithwick Rattlin’ Rogue
This lure features an added weight allowing them to sit on bass’s face, tempting them to bite.
Heddon Zara Spook
Top water lure with just the right size that produces side-to-side retrieve for big bass. For most anglers, it has been a go-to lure due to its high success rate.
Jelly Worm
Jelly worm’s translucent color proves that it is more attractive to fishes compared to solid colored worms. The shape, size, and aroma are some of the other factors that helped push the soft plastic lures into the market.
Roboworm Straight Worm
The most attractive feature to this lure is the color. The pink hue is considered the best color for fish catching.
Snagproof Frog
This lure mimics the appearance of frogs with added weight for accurate casting. It is a silicone coated rubber with built-in rattles that is 100% effective.
Zoom Brush Hog
This lure is one of the staples. In today’s market it is known as “creatures bait” because of their bulky build with tails, wings, and arms that creates motion in water. The material is composed of soft and salty plastic that attracts bass to bite. Yet, they are strong enough to survive getting bitten multiple times. With wide availability of colors, you are guaranteed to catch a fish.
Z-man TRD
This lure is made with soft material providing a realistic feel and increased hook-up. Z Man is specially designed for fussy fishes with its subtle action. This bait not only looks good but also durable.
Redfin Lures
Nories Wasabi Spoon
This lure comes in handy when fishing redfins because they can cast in far distance. It comes with a variety of sizes and colors which are perfectly made for redfins. The spoon however is designed to be subtle yet with a wobbling action.
Strike Tiger 3 Inch Curl Tail
Redfins responds well with bright colors, so this lure is perfect. The durability of this lure is also impressive, similar to high-end lures like Zman and Berkley. They also come in a pre-scented smell that is not too strong nor too faint, but just right for redfins.
Duo Realis Spearhead Ryuki
The spearhead Ryuki is a hard body lure with a shimmering appearance. This guarantees maximum casting due to added weight.
Tasmanian Devil Blade and Spoon
The Tasmanian devil allows multiple rigging modifications to match any angler needs. This lure can be used in freshwater, saltwater, cold water, and warm water. Available in 100 color options in many different sizes.
Z-man Slim Swimz
This soft plastic lure works great in both sea and saltwater in catching redfin. This Zman Slim is available in two sizes and twenty two different colors. One of the best features of this lure is the realistic look and movement that strongly mimics baitfish.
Gear Gravity Twitch Minnow and Twitch Pencil
With the realistic look of this lure it makes predators strike hard. During retrieval, this lure keeps moving even through strong currents. This features a long magnetic cast system that is easy to pull off resulting in precise casts.
The rattle sends out distinctive sounds that attract pike, trout, salmon, and perch.
Rapala Shadow Rap Jack Deep Hardbody Lure
The Rapala lures can cast a mile up to three meters deep making it perfect for catching redfin. The colors are realistic, rings are heavy duty, and a lifelike swimming action. It is also versatile and can be used in many different applications and fishing methods.
Blue Fox Vibrax Spinners
The Vibrax spinners is a no-frill lure option that works best in redfin. These lures are available in four grams and six grams, running between 0.6 – 1.2 meters.
Pontoon 21 Paco Spoon
This lure was considered one of the best redfin lures back in 2021. With a 45mm profile size weighing 10.5 grams (long version) and 55 mm size weighing 14 grams (large version), this lure is excellent for catching trout, perch, and bass.
Zerek Fish Trap Soft Vibe 65mm
The Zerek lure is built from tough and durable plastic material that is designed for aggressive fishes. This lure also works with impressive vibration, allowing the fish trap to be casted and retrieved in any depth.
Saltwater Lures
MirrOlure 52MR
The MirrOlure is a reliable lure to catch different species, due to its ability to slow sink and steady retrieve. It is versatile making it a good choice for saltwater lure. This lure is composed of hard-plastic twitch making fussy fishes bite.
Heddon Zara Spook
This lure is famous for its side-to-side kicking action that all fishes cannot resist. The Spook lure features a slow and rhythmic pattern that mimics baitfish. Not only does this lure swim well, but the bullet shape and weight allows it to cover the water more. The size of 4 1/2 inches long imitates dead or injured mullet or anchovy.
Spro Bucktail
This lure resembles real fish with its glossy finish and lifelike eyes. It has a large wash of hair causing the bucktail lure to sink in deep water.
Luhr Jensen Krocodile Spoon
This spoon features a wobble and slow sink. It is one of the most versatile lures for casting, jigging, and trolling. The wobble action that this spoon makes mimics injured baitfish. This spoon comes in 32 different colors with a fish scale finish, making it more realistic.
Berkley Gulp! Paddleshad
Gulp! developed a signature smell for their lures making them more effective even with live baits. The scent combined with kicking tail makes this lure an awesome bait.
Rapala Countdown Magnum 18
This lure is best used in saltwater for trolling as it uses premium materials and is also tested to ensure reliability. It has a metal lip that keeps straight swimming in deep waters consistently. With its welded line tie, premium split rings, and balsa wood body, it is indeed the best trolling saltwater lure.
Nomad Design Streaker Jig
This lure is the best used for deep jigging because of its fish-like finish and vibration. It is designed to sink fast and proven to catch fishes in deep water.
Tactical Anglers SubDarter Smart Lure
This is considered the best surf plug used in saltwater. It has large rattles with casting weight and reversed grills for vibration. Tactical angler is simple and effective for surfcasting.
Paddletail Soft Plastic
This lure attracts all kinds of fishes that eat small baitfish. It features a soft tail that creates motion when retrieved. This lure can cover water at 10 inches with a fast retrieve, the next cast target the depth of 5+ feet.
Gold Spoon
The gold spoon is a staple in saltwater fishing as it is known to attract different species.
Power Prawn
Shrimp is the best lure for saltwater fishing, as there aren’t many fishes that don’t eat shrimp. The Power Prawn can be used in grass flats and deep water.
White Jig Bucktail
Bucktail jigs remain the most effective lure to catch fish. These lures can be used in different ways in different locations. The best thing about these lures is they can catch anything in the ocean.
Popper
A small floating lure that is molded to mimic a small baitfish. It is a great option for bass fishing in clear or muddy waters.
Jerkbait
A minnow-shaped lure that provides a straight retrieve. A jerkbait shines when on retrieve, it gives an unpredictable movement which makes bass fussy.
Mirrolure Suspending Twitchbait
This type of lure is designed to mimic minnow. Using these twitch baits increase the chance of bite since minnows are the most favorable baitfish of most predator fish. These MirrOLures come in a variety of shapes and colors making them versatile.
Conclusion
In this modern age, wherein you can search hundreds of fishing lures it is important to choose the one that fits your needs. With the influence of the media, manufacturers will continue to produce lures that mimic baitfish.
Having the best fishing lures is essential for anglers of all levels. So before you start your fishing adventure, start stocking up on high-quality lures that increase your level of success.
If you have other recommendations on amazing fishing lures, we’d love to hear you in the comments below.
Additional Resources:
- Topwater lures for bass: https://www.wired2fish.com/buyers-guides/best-topwater-lures-for-bass
- Best bass lures: https://www.bassblog.org/best-bass-lures/
- Largemouth bass lures: https://www.tripsavvy.com/best-largemouth-bass-lures-4172391
- Guide to choosing a lure: https://www.calloutdoors.com/types-of-lures/
- How to choose baits: https://www.takemefishing.org/how-to-fish/how-to-catch-fish/how-to-choose-the-bait/
