Striped bass Morone saxatilis

How they feed

• Water50–72°F, best near 62°
• TideIncoming
• MoonEither
• DepthUsually 5–35 ft

Scored against their own temperature range and tide preference first, then wind, weather and warnings. Solunar periods only break ties. How the score works

Season by state

• MarylandApr–Jun, Sep–Nov
• VirginiaApr–Jun, Sep–Nov
• DelawareApr–Jun, Sep–Nov
• New JerseyMay–Nov
• New YorkMay–Nov
• North CarolinaMar–Jun, Sep–Nov
• MassachusettsMay–Oct
• South CarolinaMar–May, Oct–Dec
• TexasNov–May
• ArkansasApr–May, Oct–Nov
• ConnecticutMay–Nov
• MissouriApr–Jun, Sep–Nov
• Rhode IslandMay–Nov
• TennesseeMar–Jun, Oct–Nov
• ArizonaNov–Apr
• CaliforniaMar–Jun, Sep–Dec
• GeorgiaMar–Jun, Oct–Nov
• OklahomaMar–May, Oct–Nov
• KansasApr–May, Oct–Nov
• KentuckyApr–Jun, Sep–Nov
• New HampshireJun–Oct
• NevadaNov–Apr
• PennsylvaniaMay–Jun, Aug–Oct
• UtahApr–May, Oct–Nov

The Maryland, Delaware and Virginia months are the Chesapeake-region season. Everywhere else it is carried over by water temperature: a month counts at a spot when its usual water is in the range that marks the mid-Atlantic season (53–78°F), from the spot’s own gauge where it has one and an estimate from air temperature where it doesn’t. Each state lists the months that hold at half or more of its spots. Where the water temperatures come from.

Keep or release

• Arizona10 a dayArizona statewide: 10 striped bass a day, no minimum length. Lake Pleasant, Lake Mead, Lake Mohave and Lake Powell are unlimited.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Arkansas6 a dayArkansas statewide: 6 striped and hybrid bass a day combined, no minimum. Beaver allows 3 with a 20" minimum on striped bass; Ouachita allows 3 striped bass.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• California18" minimum · 2 a day18" minimum, 2 striped bass a day statewide; hybrids count as striped bass. The Colorado River and Southern districts and New Hogan, San Antonio and Santa Margarita lakes have no size limit and allow 10 a day.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Connecticut28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28" to under 31", open all year. Non-offset circle hooks required when fishing with bait. From the CT 2025 marine rules (last updated May 23, 2025); check CT DEEP for 2026 changes.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Delaware tidal28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a dayDelaware ocean coast and Inland Bays: 1 fish a day, 28–31", open all year. No striped bass may be kept in federal waters more than 3 miles out.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Delaware tidal28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day (Jan 1–Jun 30, Sep 1–Dec 31); 20" minimum · 24" maximum · 1 a day (Jul 1–Aug 31)Delaware Bay, Delaware River and their tributaries: 1 fish a day, 28–31", except 20–24" from Jul 1 to Aug 31. Catch and release only Apr 1–May 31 on the spawning grounds: the Nanticoke, the Delaware River north of the C&D Canal's south jetty, and the canal itself.Tidal delaware waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Georgia15 a dayGeorgia reservoirs (Lanier, West Point): 15/day for striped/white/hybrid bass in aggregate, only two of which may be 22" or longer; no minimum size.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Kansas non-tidal5 a dayKansas (K.A.R. 115-25-14): 5 striped bass a day statewide; wipers are a separate 5-a-day limit.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Kentucky15" minimum · 5 a dayKentucky statewide: 15" minimum, 5 striped bass a day (white and hybrid bass are a separate 15, only 5 over 15"). Lake Cumberland is 22" and 2 a day.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Maine28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a dayMaine DMR 2026: 1 striped bass a day, 28–31" inclusive, open all year in coastal waters up to the head of tide (the Kennebec, Sheepscot, Androscoggin and Saco have special rules). Non-offset circle hooks required with bait; federal waters beyond 3 miles are closed.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Maryland non-tidal18" minimum · 2 a dayLakes and ponds: 18" minimum, 2/day striped and hybrid striped bass combined, only one over 30". Keeping striped bass from nontidal rivers and streams is illegal.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Maryland tidal28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a dayAtlantic Ocean, coastal bays and their tributaries (Ocean City / Assateague): 28–31" slot, 1 fish/day, year-round — the ASMFC coastwide reg. Distinct from the Chesapeake Bay 19–24" reg.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Maryland tidal19" minimum · 24" maximum · 1 a dayMaryland Chesapeake Bay, 2026. Catch and release only Jan 1–Apr 30 and Dec 6–31; harvest May 1–Jul 31 and Sep 1–Dec 5 at 1 fish a day, 19–24"; closed to all striped bass fishing in August. In May, harvest is only allowed in the main Bay (and Tangier and Pocomoke sounds), not in its bays, rivers and creeks. Spawning rivers and the Upper Bay spawning area are closed to all striped bass fishing Mar 1–May 31. Non-offset circle hooks with bait; eels may not be used as bait; no possession midnight–5 a.m.Tidal bay waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Massachusetts28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28" to under 31", open all year. Non-offset circle hooks required when fishing with bait.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Missouri15 a dayMissouri: 15 white, yellow, striped and hybrid bass a day combined, no minimum, but only 4 of them over 18". Bull Shoals and Norfork allow 3 striped bass with a 20" minimum.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Nevada non-tidal15 a dayNevada: striped bass fall under the general 15 warmwater game fish limit except where special rules apply.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• New Hampshire28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28" to under 31", open all year. Non-offset circle hooks required when fishing with bait.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• New Jersey28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28–31". Atlantic Ocean 0–3 miles: no closed season; beyond 3 miles closed. Circle hooks required with natural bait.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• New Jersey28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28–31". Delaware Bay and other marine waters open Mar 1–Dec 31; the Delaware River from Trenton to the Salem River is open Mar 1–31 and Jun 1–Dec 31. Circle hooks required with natural bait.Tidal delaware waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• New York28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28" to under 31", Apr 15–Dec 15 in marine waters. Non-offset circle hooks required when fishing with bait.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• North Carolina28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a dayAtlantic Ocean only — 28–31" slot, 1 fish/day, year-round. Albemarle Sound and the Central Southern Management Area are currently closed to striped bass harvest.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 21, 2026 · source
• North Carolina20" minimum · 4 a dayNorth Carolina inland impoundments: 20" minimum, 4 striped and hybrid bass a day combined. Lake Gaston drops the minimum Jun 1–Sep 30; coastal rivers are managed separately and several are closed to harvest.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Oklahoma5 a dayOklahoma: 5 striped bass a day, no length limit; hybrids are a separate 20 a day with only 5 over 20". Lake Texoma allows 10 striped and hybrid bass combined, only 2 of them 20" or longer.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Pennsylvania20" minimum · 2 a dayInland waters: 20" minimum, 2/day combined with hybrid striped bass. Open year-round.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 21, 2026 · source
• Potomac River Fisheries Commission19" minimum · 24" maximum · 1 a dayTidal Potomac main stem (PRFC), 2026: catch and release only Jan 1–May 15; harvest May 16–Jul 6 and Aug 21–Dec 31 at 1 fish a day, 19–24"; closed to targeting Jul 7–Aug 20. Non-offset circle hooks with cut or whole natural bait; no live eels; no more than 2 hooks per line.Tidal potomac waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Rhode Island28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a day1 fish at 28" to under 31", open all year. Non-offset circle hooks required when fishing with bait.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• South Carolina10 a daySouth Carolina statewide: striped and hybrid bass 10 a day combined, no length limit. The Santee system (Marion, Moultrie) is a 3-fish 23–25" slot and closed Jun 16–Sep 30; Lake Murray has a 21" minimum Oct 1–May 31; Hartwell and Thurmond allow only 3 over 26"; coastal rivers are 26" and 3 a day, closed in summer.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Tennessee15" minimum · 2 a dayTennessee: 15" minimum, 2 striped or hybrid striped bass a day combined. Cordell Hull protects striped bass from 32 to 42"; the Mississippi River allows 6 with no minimum.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Texas18" minimum · 5 a day18" minimum, 5/day striped and hybrid striped bass in any combination. Lake Texoma: no minimum, 10 a day, only 2 of them 20" or longer.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Utah non-tidalno daily limitUtah statewide: no limit on striped bass, including Lake Powell.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Virginia non-tidal (VDWR)20" minimum · 4 a dayVirginia landlocked striped bass and hybrids: 4 a day combined, none under 20", open all year. Kerr, Claytor, Gaston and Smith Mountain have their own seasonal rules.Non tidal waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Virginia tidal (VMRC)28" minimum · 31" maximum · 1 a dayVirginia coastal waters (the ocean out to 3 miles and the seaside of the Eastern Shore and Virginia Beach): 1 fish a day, 28–31", open Jan 1–Mar 31 and May 16–Dec 31. Federal waters beyond 3 miles are closed. Non-offset circle hooks with bait; no gaffing.Atlantic waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source
• Virginia tidal (VMRC)19" minimum · 24" maximum · 1 a dayVirginia Chesapeake Bay and its tributary rivers: 1 fish a day, 19–24", in two seasons, May 16–Jun 15 and Oct 4–Dec 31. Virginia rivers that empty into the Potomac follow PRFC rules. Non-offset circle hooks with bait; no gaffing.Tidal bay waters · verified Oct 23, 2026 · source

Rules change, and they differ by state and often by water. Each spot page shows the limits for its own water. Striped bass are fished at spots in 25 states: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia.