Best Trout Fishing Lures

Trout have a diet that can vary wildly depending on species and location. Because of this, many varieties of lures, flies, and baits can be used when fishing for trout.

They can, however, be temperamental with what they eat. Improving catch rate will require you to have a stock of lures in your box. With the demand for trout lures increasing as more anglers are taking to fishing trout, there is an ever-growing number available on the market.

The best way to gain the knowledge you will need for your local area, or the area you are visiting is to ask the local anglers what they are having success with. This is because trout diet varies from species to species and is different between locations.

Below you will find our pick of what we consider the top 5 best trout fishing lures followed by a comprehensive buyers guide to help you make the correct decision for your fishing needs.

There are many types of lure for trout, coming in a variety of shapes and sizes. They are designed not only to catch the attention of the fish, but to be visually appealing in the tackle box.

It is always worth keeping in mind that no one lure works all the time, and different lures will be required for different locations and species.

Now you have seen our pick for the top 5 trout fishing lures; the comprehensive buyers guide below will help you to make the correct choice for your style of fishing.

Type

The types of lures available for trout fishing vary wildly in design; this is because trout diet and feeding tendencies can be quite contrasting. Smaller trout prefer to dine on insects while trout measuring over a foot long will feed on smaller fish, frogs, and worms.

The best bait you can use for trout is live bait that corresponds to what they eat,. Minnows, salmon eggs, worms, larvae, crickets, grasshoppers are all popular choices. I have also found that the best bait for rainbows is large insects, small fish, and worms, but be sure to check your state’s regulations on live bait when trout fishing.

You will find the most success when using lures that are a realistic facsimile of the food trout like to eat. Take into account shape, color, and behavior on the water. Many are designed to imitate insects and small fish. The design as well as bright colors are very attractive to trout, if it has a reflective surface, this is a plus.

Imitation lures have a proven track record, but spinners, minnow plugs, dough bait, worms, and swimbait all show good levels of success.

Sometimes trout can be hard to predict when it comes to lures, so variety is key. If you find a lure just isn’t cutting it, you should always have a selection of backups in your tackle box. Different lures exhibit different behavior in the water and provoke a different response from the fish it is hard to judge what will work at the time.

Size

Trout isn’t the biggest species, and they have relatively small mouths in comparison to the size of their body. Feeding on small fish, you will find smaller lures work well in conjunction with a light or ultralight tackle.

However, the required lure size will depend on the water depth and weather conditions, essentially the deeper the water, the bigger the lure. One and two size spinners will suit shallower waters and streams, but when casting further distances into deep water between four and nine will do the trick.

Material

Trout are not only capable of seeing the same color spectrum as us, but they can see colors within the UV spectrum too. Lures that have reflective properties, are bright and have motion are ideal. Trout are also capable of detecting vibration, and the best lures will imitate a fish in movement, size, and color.

Silver is the ideal material for the blade attached to your lure, if your lure features one. It is the most reflective, catching the attention of trout far better when compared to brass or nickel blades. However, they must all be resistant to corrosion.

Having realistic 3D eyes on the lure is also a significant advantage as it will trigger the predatory actions of the fish, increasing the chance of a bite. The eyes should have an oval pupil and be iridescent in color, similar to a real fish eye.

Weight

Lure weight will be dependent on the rest of your setup and what type of water you will be fishing. For trout, you should be using a light or ultralight tackle, which means that lightweight lures are your go-to.

However, in adverse weather conditions or when fishing deeper waters, heavier lures will be needed. Surface lures work great in shallow water, with weighted lures being the best choice for deeper water.

Treble Hooks

Trout are quite adept at detecting hooks, in part because of their excellent eyesight, but they can also be quite wary. Smaller hooks are the order of the day when fishing trout, and if they can be hidden in brightly covered feathers and sleeves or other coverage, even better.

Hook size will have to depend on the bait you are using, but you should always choose the smallest hook size you can for the bait. It is worth noting that if you catch and release, you should use #10 to #12 size hooks for the safety of the fish; smaller hooks can be swallowed by the trout, and they could die.

Be sure you check the state regulations regarding bait and hook usage in case smaller hook sizes aren’t legal.

Recap

When it comes down to it, I feel like the Neon Kit from Trout Magnet is the best buy on this list. While it can be taken as a bit of a gimmick, the lures really perform on the water, come in a convenient case and have a good selection right out the box.

Do you agree or disagree with our pick of best trout fishing lures? Let us know in the comments below what you think. If there are any articles you would like to see or improvements you think we can make, please get in contact.