Lures for pike
Pike lures: soft plastic, crankbait, spoon or dead bait?
Four lure groups cover almost every pike situation, from Irish loughs to Dutch polders and Canadian lakes. Size, running depth and speed matter, the brand does not.
The lure groups
What for, in which size and colour, and how to work it.
Soft plastic on a jig head
The all-rounder at drop-offs, over weed and in open water. First choice on an unknown water.
- Size
- 12 to 18 cm (5 to 7 in), in autumn and winter up to 20 to 25 cm. Jig head light enough that the lure still sinks slowly.
- Colour
- Clear water and sun: natural (roach, perch pattern). Murky water and low light: loud (firetiger, chartreuse) or dark with contrast.
- Retrieve
- Slow straight retrieve with stops, or jigging: two turns of the handle, pause, let it sink. Most bites come on the pause.
Crankbait and jerkbait
Shallow water over weed, edges with a fixed running depth, trolling from a boat.
- Size
- 10 to 15 cm, running depth to match the spot: shallow runner over weed, deep diver at the edge.
- Colour
- As with soft plastics: natural in clear water, loud in murky water. A light belly helps from below.
- Retrieve
- Steady with short stops. Jerkbaits with slack-line jerks, twitchbaits with short snaps from the wrist.
Spoon and spinner
Covering big areas fast, rivers with current, beginners without jigging experience.
- Size
- Spoon 15 to 30 g, spinner size 4 to 6. The deeper, the heavier.
- Colour
- Silver in sun, copper or gold in murky water and at dusk.
- Retrieve
- Steady, as slow as the spoon still wobbles. Lift the spinner briefly after the cast so the blade starts.
Dead bait
Cold water, sluggish pike, static fishing at edges and in winter. Often the most productive bait when lures fail.
- Size
- 15 to 25 cm roach, rudd, herring or mackerel. Essential: wire trace and a dead bait rig with two trebles.
- Colour
- Not relevant. Fresh or thawed, not mushy.
- Retrieve
- On the bottom or under a float just above it. Do not wait long on a take, a prompt strike protects the fish.
Through the year
- Spring after the closed season Shallow sunny bays. Small lures, slow. Check closed seasons for your country or German state before you go.
- Summer Early and late in the day, over and beside weed. Shallow crankbaits and topwater, deeper at the edge by day.
- Autumn The best time. Big soft plastics and dead baits at edges and weed lines. See the tip Pike in autumn.
- Winter Slow and deep. Dead bait or a big soft plastic, long pauses, few casts placed well.
Rules of thumb
Small in spring, big in autumn. A pike takes prey up to a third of its own length.
Always a pike-proof trace, even when perch fishing in pike water. Pike cut through mono.
After an hour without contact change the spot, not the lure. Where the baitfish are, the pike are.
Quick questions
What is the best lure for pike?
There is no single best. A soft plastic on a jig head covers most situations, dead bait catches in cold water, crankbaits and spoons cover ground. Size, running depth and speed decide.
What colour for pike lures?
Clear water and sun: natural patterns. Murky water, dusk or overcast: loud or dark colours with contrast. When in doubt start natural and change if nothing bites.
How big should a pike lure be?
12 to 18 cm is the standard, 20 to 25 cm in autumn and winter. Small lures catch pike too, but bring more perch and zander.
Next
Lures for other species
Lures for other species
Everything here is a rule of thumb from practice, not a guarantee. Lures are named as a group, not as a brand. Sizes are guide values.
In Germany, closed seasons and minimum sizes are set by each state and can be stricter for single waters. All German rules by state, with the legal source. Outside Germany, the local rules apply: licence and agency by country.
Know more?
Additions, photos of your catches or a mistake in the text: write to us and we will gladly credit you as a helper.
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