Species
Smallmouth Bass
Micropterus dolomieu · family Centrarchidae
Live · updated
Premier gamefish of the non-tidal Potomac, the Upper Susquehanna, and Deep Creek Lake. Pound-for-pound one of the hardest-fighting freshwater fish. Hits tubes, crayfish imitations, spinnerbaits, and topwater poppers.
Preferred conditions
- Water temp
- 55–78°F (ideal 68°F)
- Tide
- either
- Moon
- either
- Depth
- 3–30 ft
- Active months
- Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov
Best smallmouth bass conditions today
Youghiogheny River — Friendsville
Folsom Lake
Selkirk Shores State Park
Jennings Randolph Lake
North Branch Potomac River — Luke
North Branch Potomac River — Barnum
Sandusky River (Fremont)
Deep Creek Lake
Wills Creek — Cumberland Narrows
Presque Isle State Park
Shasta Lake
Mille Lacs Lake
Smith Mountain Lake
Catawba Island State Park (Port Clinton)
Kennebec River (Augusta)
Chickamauga Lake
Evitts Creek
Broadford Lake Park
Shawnee State Park
Laurel Hill State Park
Lake Travis
Claytor Lake
Fort Peck Lake
Lake Coeur d’Alene
Lake Sakakawea (Fort Stevenson State Park)
Lake Oahe (Oahe Downstream, Pierre)
Sebago Lake
Lake Winnipesaukee
Elephant Butte Reservoir
Navajo Lake
Lake Francis Case (Chamberlain)
Lake Sharpe (Pierre)
Squam Lake
Lake Audubon
Lake Amistad
California Delta (Sacramento–San Joaquin)
St. Lawrence River (1000 Islands)
Lake Lanier
Lake Vermilion
Raystown Lake — Seven Points Beach
Summersville Lake
Dale Hollow Lake
Saginaw Bay
Broken Bow Lake
Connecticut River (Bellows Falls)
Lake Havasu
Roosevelt Lake
Lake Minnetonka
New River (Thurmond Gorge)
Lake Texoma
Bull Shoals Lake
Lake Powell (Bullfrog)
Lake Mead (Hemenway Harbor)
Spirit Lake
West Okoboji Lake
Milford Lake
Wilson Lake
Lewis and Clark Lake
Lake of the Woods (Baudette)
Rainy Lake (International Falls)
Peninsula State Park (Nicolet Bay Beach)
Niagara River (Lower)
Lake Norman
Saguaro Lake
Maumee River (Side Cut Metropark)
Detroit River (Wyandotte)
Lake Berryessa
Edgewater Beach (Cleveland)
Sims Park Beach (Euclid)
Lake Champlain (Burlington)
Riverbend Park — Upper Potomac
Tims Ford Lake
Lake Champlain
Prettyboy Reservoir
Monocacy River — Buckeystown
Lake of the Ozarks
Lake Cumberland
Greenbrier State Park
Prince Gallitzin State Park
Yellow Creek State Park
Port Crescent State Park
Cacapon Resort State Park
West Point Lake
Flaming Gorge Reservoir
Lake St. Clair (Metropark)
Sturgeon Bay (Door County)
Antietam Creek — Burnside Bridge
Conococheague Creek — Williamsport
Oneida Lake
Potomac River — Williamsport
Cayuga Lake
Ludington State Park
Loch Raven Reservoir
Cowans Gap State Park
Lake Memphremagog (Newport)
Liberty Reservoir
Patapsco Valley State Park — Daniels Area
Gifford Pinchot State Park
Pine Grove Furnace State Park
Tuscarora State Park
Table Rock Lake
Beaver Lake
Lake Guntersville
Mississippi River (Grafton)
Kentucky Lake
J. Percy Priest Lake
31st Street Beach (Margaret T. Burroughs Beach)
Marquette Park Beach (Gary, Miller Beach)
Washington Park Beach (Michigan City)
Wheeler Lake
Lake Pueblo
Cherry Creek Reservoir
Chatfield Reservoir
Horsetooth Reservoir
Green Bay (Bay Beach, Green Bay)
Lake McConaughy (Ogallala)
Cheat Lake
Pickwick Lake
Bay de Noc (Escanaba)
Potomac River — Point of Rocks
Lake Barkley
Conowingo Dam Tailrace
Jean S. Roberts Memorial Park (Perryville)
Mississippi River (Clinton)
Kentucky Lake
No locations match that filter.
Regulations by jurisdiction
Maryland (non-tidal)
Stale: last verified 96 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 5
Non-tidal MD: 12-inch minimum, 5 per day in aggregate with largemouth bass. Harvest season is June 16 through the last day of February. March 1–June 15 is catch-and-release only. Special regulations apply on sections of the non-tidal Potomac — check site-specific rules.
Source · verified 2026-04-22
Delaware (tidal)
Stale: last verified 96 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Max size
- 17"
- Creel
- 6
Delaware non-tidal waters: 12–17 inch protected slot — you cannot keep any fish from 12 to 17 inches inclusive. Below 12 in and above 17 in are legal, but only 1 fish over 17 inches may be kept per day. Total creel 6 per day. No spawning closure like MD (which is C&R March 1–June 15 for bass). DE's smallmouth fishery is small — mostly the Brandywine Creek, Christina River, and Red Clay Creek in New Castle County — but it's regulated independently of largemouth (no aggregate rule).
Source · verified 2026-04-22
Virginia (non-tidal — VDWR)
Stale: last verified 96 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
Non-tidal VA: 5 per day in aggregate with largemouth bass. Same water-specific slot limits apply: James River and New River (Fields Dam to state line) have a 14–22 inch protected slot with only 1 fish over 22 in allowed; Shenandoah River has an 11–14 inch slot; Claytor Lake requires a 14-inch minimum; Lake Moomaw requires 12-inch minimum. VA's smallmouth fisheries (James, New, Shenandoah) are nationally recognized — check water-specific rules before keeping any fish.
Source · verified 2026-04-22
OH
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
great lakes
- Min size
- 14"
- Creel
- 5
Lake Erie: 14" minimum, 5/day.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
PA
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
great lakes
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 6
Lake Erie: 15" minimum, 6/day.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 6
12" minimum, 6/day (combined with largemouth). Catch-and-release only mid-Apr–mid-Jun spawning period.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
WV
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 6
6 black bass/day in aggregate (12" minimum on many waters — check the water-specific rule).
Source · verified 2026-05-29
TX
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 14"
- Creel
- 5
14" minimum, 5/day (black bass in aggregate).
Source · verified 2026-05-29
GA
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 14"
- Creel
- 5
14" minimum, 5/day (black bass in aggregate).
Source · verified 2026-05-29
CA
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 5
12" minimum, 5/day in lakes/reservoirs.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
AZ
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 6
6/day in aggregate with other black bass.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
TN
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
5/day (smallmouth/spotted combined); only one over 16" per day.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
NC
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
5/day; mountain reservoirs may carry a size limit.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
MO
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 6
15" minimum, 6/day (black bass combined).
Source · verified 2026-05-29
MN
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 6
6/day (bass combined); many lakes are catch-and-release in the spring pre-season.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
OK
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 6
6/day (black bass combined), only one over 16"; 14" minimum in rivers.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
AL
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 10
10 black bass/day (max 5 smallmouth), 15" minimum on most reservoirs.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
KY
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
5 black bass/day, no more than 2 smallmouth.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
AR
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 6
15" minimum, 6/day on Bull Shoals, Beaver, Norfork and Table Rock.
Source · verified 2026-05-29
NY
Stale: last verified 59 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 5
12" minimum, 5/day (black bass in aggregate).
Source · verified 2026-05-29
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
great lakes
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 5
Lake Ontario: 5 black bass/day, 12" minimum (third Saturday in June through Nov 30; catch-and-release at other times).
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTCO
Stale: last verified 56 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 5
Largemouth and smallmouth in aggregate: 5/day, 15" minimum east of the Continental Divide; smallmouth are unlimited west of the Divide.
Source · verified 2026-06-01
NTMTE
Stale: last verified 56 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
Eastern District: 5 smallmouth bass daily and in possession.
Source · verified 2026-06-01
NTUT
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 20
Lake Powell: 20 smallmouth/day — an abundant fishery Utah encourages anglers to harvest.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTNV
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 13"
- Creel
- 6
Lake Mead: 6 black bass/day (smallmouth and largemouth combined), 13" minimum.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
MI
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
great lakes
- Min size
- 14"
- Creel
- 5
Michigan: 5 smallmouth/day, 14" minimum. Catch-and-immediate-release season runs before the mid-June opener on most Great Lakes waters — confirm dates.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
WI
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
great lakes
- Min size
- 14"
- Creel
- 5
Wisconsin Great Lakes / Green Bay: 5 bass/day, 14" minimum (a renowned trophy smallmouth fishery).
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTND
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
North Dakota: 5 bass/day, no statewide size limit.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTSD
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
South Dakota: 5 bass/day (largemouth and smallmouth combined).
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTNE
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 5
Nebraska: 5 black bass/day, 15" minimum on most reservoirs.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTME
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 2
Maine South Zone general law: 2 black bass/day (only 1 over 14"); North Zone is unlimited. Confirm the zone.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTVT
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 5
Lake Champlain: 5 bass/day (largemouth + smallmouth combined), 12" minimum.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTNH
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 5
New Hampshire: 5 bass/day, 12" minimum.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTIA
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 3
Iowa public lakes: 3 black bass/day, 15" minimum (6 in possession).
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTKS
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 15"
- Creel
- 5
Kansas: 5 black bass/day, 15" minimum on most reservoirs.
Source · verified 2026-06-03
IL
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Min size
- 12"
- Creel
- 6
Illinois: 6 black bass/day, 12" minimum (14" on Carlyle and some reservoirs).
Source · verified 2026-06-03
NTNM
Stale: last verified 54 days ago.
non tidal
- Creel
- 5
New Mexico: 5 black bass/day (largemouth and smallmouth combined).
Source · verified 2026-06-03