Choosing The Best Fishing Line for Bluefish

Bluefish are popular sportfish that have a fearsome set of jaws. Their blade-like teeth are capable of cutting through many types of fishing line, adding an extra challenge when trying to land one.

These factors make finding the best fishing line for bluefish a difficult task.

Line selection is a critical factor when targeting toothy predators like bluefish. In this article, I will break down the best types of fishing line for three different sizes of bluefish you might encounter while angling.

Table of Contents

• Why Does Line Selection Matter?
• Do You Need A Wire Leader For Bluefish?
• Snappers
• Schoolies
• Gators 
• Final Thoughts

Why Does Line Selection Matter?

Your fishing line selection doesn’t just affect the breaking strength of your line, it can also affect visibility, casting distance, lure action, and the capacity of the line on your spool.

If you use a fishing line that is too light, you are susceptible to being bitten off or spooled by a running fish.

Using extremely heavy line may sound like a good solution, but it comes with its own set of issues. The heavier your line is, the more visible it is to any fish looking to bite it. Seeing the line will turn many fish away from biting.

In addition to this, heavier line takes up significantly more room on the spool. Doubling your line strength will cut your line capacity by roughly half.

This means that you have less room to let a big fish run.

A thick line also has much more weight and air resistance, which affects your casting ability. You want to be able to cast out to where the bluefish are feeding.

The ideal situation when choosing a fishing line is to use the lightest line you can get away with without being broken off. This will maximize the number of bites you get, your line capacity, and your casting distance.

You may also like: The 12 Best Bluefish Lures (& How To Fish Them!)

Do You Need A Wire Leader For Bluefish?

The short answer is no, you don’t need wire for bluefish and heavy monofilament or fluorocarbon will do the trick most of the time.

Wire presents all of the same challenges as a heavy clear leader, but to a much higher degree. It is stiffer and more visible than all but the heaviest monofilament, but there are times when it is useful. 

Using a wire leader is a good option during a bluefish blitz. A blitz is when a school of predatory fish is aggressively feeding on a school of baitfish near the surface.

During a blitz, fish get fired up and will usually bite just about anything that hits the water and not care about the wire on your lure. 

You may have multiple fish going for your lure at once when a blitz is occurring. This can result in them slashing directly at your line, increasing the chance of line breakage. A few inches of wire is a great preventative measure for this scenario.

The only other time that I would advise using wire is in low visibility. At night or in extremely murky water the fish won’t be able to detect wire nearly as well. 

In the end, there are many popular Bluefish rigs, each with its own pros and cons. You also may have to alter your rig based on what size of bluefish you are fishing for.

Snappers

Snapper blues are juveniles that are around 12 inches or less. They feed just as voraciously as their larger counterparts, just in a more compact size. 

I’ve found that these little guys have much less chomping power than the big ones, so a lighter line will work just fine. If you plan on only catching snappers, 10-15 pound monofilament or fluorocarbon leader will do just fine. 

According to Animal Diversity Web, young Bluefish snappers tend to stay near the coastlines, which can make them easier to catch!

You may find that they rough up your line slightly with their teeth over time, so check your leader often and you may need to retie after multiple fish. 

Do not tie braid directly to your hook or lure. Braid has strong tensile strength, but will easily break or fray when coming into contact with the teeth of even baby bluefish.

For your main line, anything over 6 pounds will be able to handle these fish. I prefer a lighter line because it’s more of a challenge, but you can use whatever you are comfortable with. 

My recommendation when targeting snapper blues is to use a 15-pound fluorocarbon leader tied to an 8-pound braided main line.

I think this maximizes the fun you’ll have caught them while still being able to handle some bigger fish if they come your way.

Schoolies

Schoolies are mid-sized bluefish ranging from about 12 to 24 inches. These are the ones that are most abundant and the best size to eat. 

At this size the risk of getting bitten off increases greatly. Realistically you could still catch these on the lighter line used for snappers, but to be safe I would use 25-30 lb monofilament or fluorocarbon as your leader. 

For your main line, anything 10 pounds and up will work.

A 10-pound line would give you a decent fight against an average-sized bluefish, but if you just want to get the fish from the water and into the cooler as quickly as possible, I would opt for a 20-pound main line.

Related: How To Catch Bluefish From Shore (What To Look For & Tips).

Gators

“Gator” bluefish are large adults that are over 24 inches. These fish can grow to over 25 pounds and are known for their nasty attitudes.

These sized fish require a large step up in leader size due to their aggressive nature and ability to completely engulf a bait. 40-80 pound mono or fluoro leader should hold up to these predators most of the time. 

Even with a heavy leader, you should check your line after every cast. One small nick could mean that you lose the next fish to bite.

For your main line, I highly encourage you to only use braid. At this size, you need at least 25 pounds of main line. Monofilament or fluorocarbon will not cast well at this strength. 

Braid will also allow for over 3 times the line capacity of monofilament, which you’ll need for when the gator blues start peeling drag.

I would recommend a 60-pound fluorocarbon tied to 30 lb braid as an ideal setup for targeting gator bluefish. With a 30-pound main line, these larger blues will still be able to take plenty of drag. 

Final Thoughts

Bluefish really are a blast to catch, except when they’re chomping your line instead of your bait.

To keep them biting and keep your line intact, match your line setup with the size of bluefish that are prevalent near you. 

Fish’s attitudes and feeding behaviors can vary between different regions and populations, so use this as a guide and experiment with different lines to find what works best for you. Tight lines!