Where to Fish for Crappie Today — US

Covers both black crappie (P. nigromaculatus) and white crappie (P. annularis). Schooling panfish around brush, docks, and submerged timber. Spring pre-spawn is the prime season — small minnows and 1/16-oz jigs are the go-to.

Preferred conditions

Water temp: 50–80°F (ideal 65°F)
Tide: either
Moon: either
Depth: 3–20 ft
Active months: Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Oct, Nov

Best crappie conditions today

Sort Open harvest only

Deep Creek Lake

Garrett Co., MD

Jennings Randolph Lake

Garrett Co., MD

Piney Reservoir

Garrett Co., MD

Broadford Lake Park

Garrett Co., MD

Shawnee State Park

Bedford Co., PA

Laurel Hill State Park

Somerset Co., PA

Lake Travis

Lake Conroe

Montgomery Co., TX

Sam Rayburn Reservoir

Shasta Lake

Leech Lake

Smith Mountain Lake

Franklin Co., VA

Claytor Lake

Pulaski Co., VA

Elephant Butte Reservoir

Falcon Lake (Falcon International Reservoir)

Lake Amistad

Val Verde Co., TX

California Delta (Sacramento–San Joaquin)

San Joaquin Co., CA

O.H. Ivie Reservoir

Lake Cumberland

Russell Co., KY

Lake Lanier

Forsyth Co., GA

Chickamauga Lake

Hamilton Co., TN

Clear Lake

Raystown Lake — Seven Points Beach

Huntingdon Co., PA

Jordan Lake

Chatham Co., NC

Falls Lake

Kerr Lake (Buggs Island)

Mecklenburg Co., VA

Summersville Lake

Nicholas Co., WV

Lake Hartwell

Anderson Co., SC

Lake Wylie

Lake Anna State Park

Spotsylvania Co., VA

Clarks Hill Lake (J. Strom Thurmond)

McCormick Co., SC

Lake Gaston

Table Rock Lake

Lake Vermilion

St. Louis Co., MN

Broken Bow Lake

McCurtain Co., OK

Lake Fork Reservoir

Lake Texoma

Grayson Co., TX

Lake Havasu

Lake Pleasant

Maricopa Co., AZ

Roosevelt Lake

Maricopa Co., AZ

Saguaro Lake

Maricopa Co., AZ

Lake of the Ozarks

Truman Lake

Lake Minnetonka

Hennepin Co., MN

Grand Lake o' the Cherokees

Delaware Co., OK

Lake Eufaula

McIntosh Co., OK

Bull Shoals Lake

Lake Ouachita

Garland Co., AR

Lake Powell (Bullfrog)

Garfield Co., UT

Lake Mead (Hemenway Harbor)

Toledo Bend Reservoir

Milford Lake

Tuttle Creek Lake

Pottawatomie Co., KS

Lewis and Clark Lake

Harlan County Reservoir

Lake of the Woods (Baudette)

Lake of the Woods Co., MN

Rainy Lake (International Falls)

Koochiching Co., MN

Lake Berryessa

Lake Norman

Iredell Co., NC

Lake Okeechobee

Palm Beach Co., FL

Lake Marion

Clarendon Co., SC

Lake Murray

Lexington Co., SC

Rocky Gap State Park — Lake Habeeb

Allegany Co., MD

Lake Koon

Bedford Co., PA

Lake Gordon

Bedford Co., PA

Lums Pond State Park

New Castle Co., DE

Greenbrier State Park

Washington Co., MD

Prince Gallitzin State Park

Cambria Co., PA

Yellow Creek State Park

Indiana Co., PA

Cacapon Resort State Park

West Point Lake

Lake Tohopekaliga

Osceola Co., FL

Tims Ford Lake

Franklin Co., TN

Lake Guntersville

Marshall Co., AL

Boysen Reservoir

Fremont Co., WY · harvest closed

Lake Winnebago (Menominee Park, Oshkosh)

Winnebago Co., WI

Prettyboy Reservoir

Baltimore Co., MD

Loch Raven Reservoir

Baltimore Co., MD

Seneca Creek State Park — Clopper Lake

Montgomery Co., MD

Burke Lake Park

Fairfax Co., VA

Cowans Gap State Park

Liberty Reservoir

Carroll Co., MD

Triadelphia Reservoir

Gifford Pinchot State Park

Pine Grove Furnace State Park

Cumberland Co., PA

Tuscarora State Park

Schuylkill Co., PA

Lake Moultrie

Berkeley Co., SC

Santee Cooper (Lake Marion)

Orangeburg Co., SC

Beaver Lake

Carroll Co., AR

Kentucky Lake

Wheeler Lake

Lake Pueblo

Cherry Creek Reservoir

Arapahoe Co., CO

Boyd Lake

Larimer Co., CO

Cheat Lake

Monongalia Co., WV

Carlyle Lake

Clinton Co., IL

Rend Lake

Franklin Co., IL

Mississippi River (Grafton)

Lake Monroe

Lake Seminole

Decatur Co., GA

Pickwick Lake

Colbert Co., AL

J. Percy Priest Lake

Davidson Co., TN

Kentucky Lake

Lake Barkley

Lewis Smith Lake

Cullman Co., AL

Lake George

Volusia Co., FL

Weiss Lake

Cherokee Co., AL

Mississippi River (Clinton)

Clinton Co., IA

Regulations by jurisdiction

Maryland (non-tidal)

Stale: last verified 96 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 15

Non-tidal MD: no minimum size, 15 per day in aggregate (black + white crappie). Open year-round.

Source · verified 2026-04-22

Delaware (tidal)

Stale: last verified 96 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 50

Delaware non-tidal waters: crappie (black and white) are regulated as "panfish" in aggregate with white perch, yellow perch, bluegill, and pumpkinseed — 50 fish/day total, no more than 25 of any one species. No minimum size. Notably more generous than MD's 15/day crappie-only aggregate.

Source · verified 2026-04-22

Virginia (non-tidal — VDWR)

Stale: last verified 96 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

Non-tidal VA: 25 per day in aggregate (black + white crappie). No statewide minimum size. Several reservoirs impose a 9- or 10-inch minimum — Buggs Island (Kerr), Lake Gaston (which has no daily limit instead), Lake Anna, etc. More generous than MD (15/day) and narrower than DE (50/day aggregate panfish).

Source · verified 2026-04-22

PA

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Min size: 9"
Creel: 20

9" minimum, 20/day (Panfish Enhancement waters may differ).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

TX

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Min size: 10"
Creel: 25

10" minimum, 25/day (white & black crappie in combination).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

GA

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 30

No minimum, 30/day (white & black crappie combined).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

FL

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

No statewide minimum, 25/day (10" minimum on some waters).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

CA

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

25/day in combination with sunfish; no size limit on most waters.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

AZ

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

25/day (10 on some waters).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

TN

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 20

20/day; only five over 12" per day.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

NC

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: no daily limit

No statewide creel or size limit (8"/20 on some reservoirs).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

SC

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 20

20/day (8" minimum on Lake Murray and some waters).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

MO

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 15

15/day on most Ozark reservoirs (varies by water).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

MN

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 10

10/day (reduced on some quality-managed lakes).

Source · verified 2026-05-29

OK

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 37

37/day statewide; 15/day on Grand, Eufaula, Tenkiller and other named lakes.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

AL

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Min size: 9"
Creel: 30

9" minimum, 30/day.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

KY

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Min size: 10"
Creel: 15

10" minimum, 15/day.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

AR

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Min size: 10"
Creel: 15

10" minimum, 15/day on the highland reservoirs.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

NY

Stale: last verified 59 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

25/day, no statewide minimum size.

Source · verified 2026-05-29

NTCO

Stale: last verified 56 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 20

Black and white crappie in aggregate: 20/day, 20 in possession.

Source · verified 2026-06-01

NTUT

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 10

Lake Powell: 10 crappie/day.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTNV

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 15

Lake Mead: 15 crappie/day.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTWI

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

Wisconsin inland: 25 panfish/day (crappie included) on most waters.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTND

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: no daily limit

North Dakota: no daily limit on crappie on most waters.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTNE

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 15

Nebraska: 15 crappie/day on most reservoirs.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTLA

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 50

Louisiana: 50 crappie ("sac-a-lait")/day, no statewide minimum (some waters carry a 10" minimum — confirm).

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTIA

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

Iowa: 25 crappie/day (Mississippi River and most waters).

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTKS

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 50

Kansas: 50 crappie/day on most reservoirs.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

IL

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

Illinois: 25 crappie/day statewide (Carlyle and some lakes use a 10" minimum / 15 fish rule).

Source · verified 2026-06-03

WV

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 30

West Virginia: 30 crappie/day on most waters (some impoundments are lower — confirm).

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTNM

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 15

New Mexico: 15 crappie/day, no size limit.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

NTSD

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 15

South Dakota: 15 crappie/day, 30 in possession.

Source · verified 2026-06-03

IN

Stale: last verified 54 days ago.

non tidal

Creel: 25

Indiana: 25 crappie/day, no statewide size limit.

Source · verified 2026-06-03