Christmas Gifts for Fishermen, Sorted by the Fish He Chases

The best Christmas gift for a fisherman depends on one thing most gift guides never ask: what fish does he chase? A bass guy, a trout guy and a catfish guy want completely different things under the tree. Figure out which one you live with, pick one small piece of gear from his row in the table below, and add one thing he'd never buy himself.

I know this because I'm the guy you're shopping for. Last December I unwrapped a tackle box full of saltwater jigs. I fish a lake in Ohio. I love the person who bought them. I have never once used them. (They make a great doorstop.)

If you're in a hurry:

• Figure out his species first. The table below shows how to spot it from his garage, truck or phone.
• Buy small gear he uses up. He has strong opinions about rods and reels, and you can't win that one.
• Add something he won't buy himself, like a guided day or a shirt with his fish on it.
• Order shirts by December 8. Ours are printed when you order, so they need production time plus shipping.

How do I know what kind of fisherman he is?

Check his garage. Ask a fisherman what he fishes for and you'll get a forty-minute answer about water temperature, but his gear tells you in ten seconds.

If you notice this...	He's probably a...	Gift that lands	His shirt
Six or more rods in the truck, bags of rubber worms, says "the bite"	Bass guy	Polarized sunglasses, his favorite soft plastics	SMALLMOUTH BASS Definition
Waders hanging in the garage, tiny flies, talks about "the hatch"	Trout or fly guy	Tippet spools, a good nipper, a guided float	BROWN TROUT or RAINBOW TROUT Definition
Fishes at night, smells faintly of cut bait, owns rod holders	Catfish guy	A bright headlamp, sturdy rod holders	CHANNEL CATFISH or FLATHEAD CATFISH Definition
Owns an ice auger, goes out at dusk, says "eyes"	Walleye guy	Hand warmers by the case, ice cleats	WALLEYE Definition
Lures as long as your forearm, a net the size of a kiddie pool	Musky guy	Heavy-duty hook cutters, patience	MUSKELLUNGE Definition
Minnow bucket, a cooler, comes home with a sink full of fillets	Panfish guy	An electric fillet knife	BLUEGILL or YELLOW PERCH Definition

If he shows up in two rows, congratulations. You married a multi-species guy. (I'm one. It's expensive.) Pick the fish he talks about most at dinner.

Christmas gifts for bass fishermen

Get the bass guy something he burns through. He already has opinions on every rod made since 1994, and he never has enough of the stuff that disappears.

A good pair of polarized sunglasses is the safest gear gift on this whole page. They cut the glare off the water so he can see fish and cover. Decent pairs run about $25, fancy ones go past $200, and the cheap ones work fine for a guy who sits on his sunglasses twice a season (hi).

The other move is a restock. Sneak into his tackle and look for the empty bag of soft plastics he keeps anyway. That's his favorite. Buy three more in the same color. He'll be more touched by that than by a $150 reel.

Then the shirt. The SMALLMOUTH BASS Definition T-Shirt has a vintage engraving of the fish, its Latin name, and a dictionary line about a two-pound fish that convinces you it weighs six. Every bass guy has told that story. Most of us still tell it.

Christmas gifts for trout and fly fishermen

Fly guys are the hardest to shop for and the easiest to please with a day on the water. Their gear is fussy. The flies are tiny, the line is labeled in a code (5X, 6X) that makes no sense to normal people, and the wrong size is useless.

So skip the gear guess. A half-day guided float trip is the gift he'll talk about until June. Prices vary a lot by region and river, so call a local fly shop and ask what a half day costs where he fishes. Most shops will sell you a gift certificate on the spot.

Want something to wrap? Line nippers and spools of tippet in his usual size are cheap, small, and always running out. Check the spools in his vest for the numbers, then match them.

For the shirt, go by his fish. The BROWN TROUT Definition T-Shirt jokes about owning forty-seven flies and still not having the right one. The RAINBOW TROUT version is about the fish jumping for freedom while you yell for the net.

Christmas gifts for catfish, walleye and musky guys

Catfish guys fish at night. A bright, rechargeable headlamp is the gift. He'll use it every trip. Sturdy rod holders are a close second, because a big flathead can drag an unattended rod into the river (ask me how I know). His shirt is the CHANNEL CATFISH Definition, about a fish with expensive taste in things you refuse to smell.

Walleye guys fish at dusk and on the ice. Buy hand warmers by the case. I'm serious. Add a pair of ice cleats if he walks out on frozen lakes. The WALLEYE Definition T-Shirt calls it "the marble-eyed phantom," which every walleye guy will read out loud.

Musky guys are a special breed. The Wisconsin DNR literally calls the musky the "fish of 10,000 casts." He knows. He's on cast 9,000-something. A pair of heavy-duty hook cutters is a smart gift, because those giant lures carry huge treble hooks. The MUSKELLUNGE Definition says a musky makes "one followed my lure" count as a good day, and I've had a lot of those good days.

What is a good gift for a fisherman who has everything?

Give him time on the water and something to laugh at. He doesn't really have everything. He has every lure.

The gift nobody else gives is permission. Write it on a card: "The first decent Saturday in January is yours. I've got the kids." Put it in a box with a shirt. That combo beats a $100 gadget he didn't ask for, every year.

We wrote a whole guide on this one. If he really is the guy with three tackle boxes and a garage full of rods, read gifts for the fisherman who has everything.

When should you not buy fishing gear at all?

When you're guessing. These are the Christmas gifts that end up in the garage, still in the plastic:

• A rod or reel he didn't name. Unless he wrote down the exact model, don't. Rod feel is personal. It's like buying someone else's shoes.
• Lures for the wrong water. Saltwater jigs for a lake guy. A bass frog for a trout guy. (See: my doorstop.)
• A fish finder. They range from about $100 to well over $2,000 and have to match his boat. Let him pick it.
• Anything that says "Gone Fishin'" in cursive. He owns four. He doesn't wear them.

And if he doesn't fish for one species at all, and just loves being on the water, the species shirts aren't for him. Go with one of our fishing Christmas gifts picks instead, or grab a few cheap extras from our fishing stocking stuffers list.

When to order fishing shirts for Christmas

Every River Giants Club shirt is printed when you order it, so it needs a few days of production plus shipping. Order by December 8 to give it a fair shot at arriving before Christmas. Arrival dates are estimates, not promises, so earlier is better.

Shirts are $29.95, with 2XL and 3XL a couple of dollars more. US shipping is $4.75 for one shirt and free for orders of two or more items. See the shipping policy for details. That math is why most people buy two: one for him, one for the buddy who texts him fishing reports at 5 a.m.

You can see every species shirt in one place on the Fish Definition Shirts page. If you're shopping for a husband specifically, our Christmas gifts for the fisherman husband post goes deeper on the "he says he wants nothing" problem.

Frequently asked questions

What are some good presents for fishermen?

Small gear he uses up (polarized sunglasses, his favorite soft plastics, hand warmers, a headlamp), a guided day on the water, or a funny shirt with the fish he chases. Avoid rods and reels unless he named the exact model.

What is one thing every fisherman needs?

Polarized sunglasses. They cut the glare off the water, protect his eyes from hooks and sun, and work for every species. Most fishermen lose or break a pair every season, so a spare is never wasted.

What is a good gift for someone who enjoys fishing but has everything?

Time on the water. A guided trip, or a written promise of a free Saturday, beats another piece of gear. Pair it with something he'll open and laugh at, like a shirt with his favorite fish on it.

When should I order fishing shirts for Christmas?

Order River Giants Club shirts by December 8. They're printed to order, so they need production time plus shipping. Arrival dates are estimates, so earlier is safer.

Whatever you pick, it'll beat my saltwater-jig doorstop.

Tight lines,
Jake