When it comes to salmon fishing, having the right size hook is crucial for success. The size of hook you need will depend on the species of salmon, the size of the fish, the type of bait used, and fishing regulations. This complete guide will walk you through how to determine the best hook size for salmon fishing.
Why Hook Size Matters for Salmon
Using the proper size hook for the salmon you are targeting is important for a few key reasons
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Proper bait fit – The hook should match the size of the bait being used Too small of a hook will result in missed bites and lost fish. Too large of a hook can hinder the action of the bait.
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Penetration – Salmon have bony mouths. The right sized hook will penetrate well on the hookset and hold in the salmon’s mouth when fighting the fish.
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Landing success – An improperly sized hook can lead to lost fish, The right hook increases landing success
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Fishing regulations – Many regions have regulations dictating legal hook sizes for certain salmon species. Using the right hook keeps you legal.
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Ethics – Proper hook sizing results in less damage to fish that are caught and released.
Hook Sizing Factors
Choosing the right salmon hook size depends on these key factors:
1. Salmon Species Being Targeted
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Chinook – The largest salmon species reaching 40+ pounds. Use large hooks – 1/0 to 5/0.
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Coho – Average 4-12 pounds. Size 1 to 3/0 hooks are common.
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Sockeye – Smaller than other salmon, 2-7 pounds typically. Best with smaller hooks like size 1 and 1/0.
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Pink – Smallest salmon species around 3-6 pounds on average. Size 2-6 hooks are best.
Larger salmon take larger hooks, but you also must match the hook to the bait size.
2. Bait Size Being Used
Match your hook size to your bait size. Some common baits and hooks:
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Large cut bait – Herring, anchovy, sardines. Use 2/0 to 5/0 hooks.
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Prawns – #1 to 2/0 hooks work well.
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Worms – Size 6-2 hooks match the bait.
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Salmon roe – Smaller hooks from size 6-2/0 match roe clusters.
You want the bait to conceal most of the hook while not being too large.
3. Fishing Method
Some techniques call for different hook sizes.
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Trolling – Use larger hooks as fish are aggressively biting moving baits. 2/0 to 5/0.
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Drifting – Moderate hooks sizes allow bait to move naturally in current. 1/0 to 3/0 range.
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** casting** – Match the hook to the lure size. Often treble hooks sized 2-5.
4. Water Conditions and Flows
In heavy currents and fast water:
- Use larger hooks to keep bait down. 3/0-5/0 hooks.
In lower clear flows:
- Smaller hooks let bait drift naturally. Size 1-2 hooks.
Current velocity impacts hook size choice.
Salmon Hook Size Chart
Use this salmon hook size chart as a general guideline for selecting your hooks:
| Salmon Species | Hook Sizes |
|---|---|
| Chinook | 1/0 to 5/0 |
| Coho | 1 to 3/0 |
| Sockeye | 1 to 1/0 |
| Pink | 2 to 6 |
Hook Types and Brands
Having the right hook style and brand for salmon also matters. Some top options include:
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Octopus – Excellent all-around salmon hooks like Gamakatsu Octopus or Owner Mosquito.
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Bait Holder – Points hold bait well. Raven or Gamakatsu make quality bait holders.
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Treble – For plugs and spinners. Choose strong trebles like Owner ST-36 for salmon.
Buying quality hooks from trusted brands will lead to more hookups and landed fish. Taking the time to match your hooks to your target species, baits, and techniques will really improve your salmon fishing success. Follow this guide and you’ll be landing more salmon!
Salmon Fishing Hook Size FAQs
What size hooks for trolling salmon?
2/0 to 5/0 hooks work well when trolling for all salmon species. The larger hook sizes are needed to handle the force of salmon striking fast moving lures and still penetrate the mouth.
What size hooks for river salmon fishing?
1/0 to 3/0 hooks are the most common hook sizes used when drift fishing or casting for salmon in rivers. The moderate sizes let baits drift naturally but still hook and land salmon well.
Are treble hooks good for salmon?
Yes, treble hooks work excellent for salmon when fishing with spinners, plugs, and spoons. Choose a treble hook sized to match the lure width. The multiple hook points hook and hold salmon.
Should I use barbed or barbless hooks?
Barbless hooks are required in some fisheries but both will work. Barbless may penetrate better but barbed offers a bit more holding power. Use barbless if fishing catch and release.
What size hooks for salmon eggs?
Size 6, 8, and 10 hooks are common for salmon roe bags and clusters. You want smaller short-shanked hooks that don’t hinder the action of the eggs drifting in current.
Single Hooks vs. Trebles
Sometimes those spoons, spinners and jigs come out of the package adorned with treble hooks, and they usually go directly into the garbage can, even though there are still a few places, mostly in freshwater, where it’s legal to use them for salmon. There are still a lot of anglers out there who would prefer to use trebles on their salmon lures if they could, but more and more Northwesterners have come to accept—even prefer—single-point hooks. How often have you heard someone say that they seem to hook-up on more strikes when using treble hooks but land a higher percentage of hooked fish when using single-point hooks? Well, there’s something to that, and it’s probably because with trebles you’re more likely to sink a hook point (or two) into the outside of a salmon’s mouth as the lure is inhaled, so the hook point is aimed back at the fish rather than toward you. When you set the hook and as you’re playing a fish that’s hooked “backwards,” you’re actually pulling the hook back out of the fish’s mouth. A single hook, on the other hand, is more likely to be taken completely into the mouth, so under tension the hook point is pulled toward you and into solid fish flesh.
While most any siwash-style single hook is better than most any treble on a wide range of salmon lures, I’ve settled on a favorite siwash in recent years. I think it was about 2011 when I discovered that the folks at Silver Horde/Gold Star were rigging one of my favorite trolling spoons, the Coho Killer, with Matzuo’s sickle-style siwashes. During the first week of the early coastal chinook season that year, the kings were in close to the beach feeding on small anchovies, and trolling Coho Killers was as close to a sure-thing as you’ll ever see in salmon fishing. The only “problem” was that there were lots of sub-legal Chinook and even more Coho (which weren’t legal to keep) mixed in with the keeper kings, so my fishing partner and I were hooking a half-dozen or more fish for every one we put in the box. One day I decided to keep an accurate count, and the two of us hooked 23 salmon and brought 22 of them to the boat! The only fish we lost was a behemoth that peeled off about 100 yards of line on the strike, tangled me up in a big ball of kelp and eventually broke off. Every one of those fish was hooked on those Matzuo sickle hooks, fished barbless on the tail end of a Coho Killer, and I’ve seen no reason to use any other siwash since.
Tandem Octopus Hooks vs. Single Siwash
While I may not be crazy about hooks with three points, there are times when I prefer a pair of single hooks over just one. Yes, as I mentioned earlier, I use a pair of octopus-style hooks, tied in tandem, whenever I fish whole or plug-cut herring baits or whole anchovies. I use the same tandem-hook rig when trolling hoochies (plastic squid), Ace Hi Flies and the like behind a flasher. I like fairly small, size 1 to 2/0 hooks, and tie them two to three inches apart, depending on the size of the hoochie or fly. The top hook should be right behind the head of the lure, and it’s often necessary to add a couple of small beads or a short length of plastic tubing above the hook to achieve that placement. The trailing hook should be tied far enough back to hang slightly behind the tail-end of the lure.
Some anglers prefer a single siwash hook on a bead chain for their hoochies and flies, but I tend to get fewer strikes and land fewer of my hook-ups this way, so have pretty much given up on that rig. I think the heavier hook and addition of the bead swivel might dampen the action that’s imparted to the lure by the flasher, or at least that’s what I’ve convinced myself. Perhaps more importantly, I figure that having two hook points back there might just improve my odds of hooking up.
There is one type of “slider” lure that I do rig with a siwash hook on a bead chain, and that’s a Brad’s Cut Plug. If you’ve ever used these little plastic plug-cut herring imitations, you’ve probably noticed that the “directions” recommend both a tandem-hook and siwash/bead chain hook option, and I’ve rigged ‘em both ways dozens of times. I would estimate that my hook-up-to-dead-fish ratio is about twice as good with the single siwash than with the tandem-hook rig. I think it’s because the siwash hangs farther back, completely clear of the lure and, once hooked, a fish has less leverage to pry the hook from its jaw. As mentioned earlier with spoons, jigs and other lures, too large a hook is better than too small a hook.