10 Best Gift Ideas for Anglers for 2023
Sure, there are a million and one fishing gifts out there, but it’s not so easy to sort the wheat from the chaff and find the very best fishing gifts for the angler you love. If you want to make sure your presents trigger ear-to-ear grins, the moment the wrapping paper comes off, check out these 10 best gift ideas for fishermen and fisherwomen. We’ll bet you hit a home run even when trying to buy a gift for a fisherman who has everything.
Browse these top 10 gift ideas, including personalized fishing gifts, for the fisherman (or fisherwoman!) who has everything:
- Super-coolers with wheels
- Custom fishing rod
- Performance fishing shirts & shorts
- Spools of fluorocarbon leader
- Portable fishfinders
- Fingerless fishing gloves
- Fishing lures
- Fish art
- Multi-tool
- Boatsetter fishing boat
Looking for other great boating and sailing gifts? Be sure to read:
- 2023 Black Friday Gift Guide for Boaters
- 10 Best Boating Gifts for Dad
- 10 Best Boating Gifts for Her
- 7 Best Towable Tubes for Adults
- 10 Best Sailing Gifts
Own a boat? Earn an extra income by putting it for rent on Boatsetter-Start here!
1. Super-coolers with wheels
If the angler you’re gifting gets out on the water via fishing boat rentals or charters, they need a way to haul drinks, food, and the catch of the day to and from different boats in different marinas. A wheeled super-cooler is ideal for the task, and as an added bonus will also come in handy for everything from camping trips to backyard cookouts. Some top brands to shop include:
2. Custom fishing rod
Fishing gifts are great, and personalized fishing gifts are even better. Few can match up to a custom fishing rod built with touches like colored wraps that coordinate with a boat or team colors, the angler’s name, or custom graphics. There are small-scale custom rodbuilders all across the nation and it may take a bit of Googling to find the best one near you, but do so and you can be sure your favorite angler will be a happy angler this season.
3. Performance fishing shirts & shorts
Anglers love showing their true colors, and they need performance clothing to protect them from the sun and heat. They also need angling garb that dries out fast and resists staining, especially from fish blood.
There are plenty of options out there but a great one to check out is the Columbia PFG line, which has UPF-rated shirts, shorts, hoodies and more designed specifically for women and children as well as for men. We also love that much of the PFG line is made in factories supporting the BSR HERproject, a program empowering women working in the global supply chain through health, finance, and gender equity training.
4. Spools of fluorocarbon leader
If your favorite angler pursues sharp-eyed oceanic predators, fluorocarbon leader will be among the most appreciated saltwater fishing gifts around. Check their tackleboxes to see the size range they need, and stock them up for next season with a few spools as stocking stuffers.
There are lots of brands to choose from but Hi-Seas Grand Slam is a top pick because it’s easier than most to knot and comes in a huge range of sizes (20- to 175-pound test).
5. Portable fishfinders
Here’s another gift that’s ideal for anglers who rent a boat from time to time, and may not enjoy the advantage of fish-finding electronics in all cases. Portable fishfinders like the battery-powered Humminbird Helix 7 CHIRP MEGA DI GPS G4 comes in a carrying case with a transducer that mounts to a boat’s transom via suction cup, a battery, and battery charger, and provides both fish-finding and GPS chartplotter functionality.
6. Fingerless fishing gloves
An angler’s hands are subjected to pokes, pricks, and bites, and they need gloves made specifically for fishing. Key attributes are that they leave the fingertips free for tying knots, have rugged and protective palms, and are waterproof or dry quickly. They shouldn’t be too thick or restrictive, and they should be UPF rated.
You have a huge range of brands to choose from and we note that Fish Monkey is a top-rated brand.
Photo Courtesy: Fish Monkey
7. Lures, lures, & more lures
Anglers love lures, and since they get sometimes snag and break off or get stolen by a fish, they need a constant supply. But if you’re not familiar with exactly which lures your loved one likes, we don’t suggest gifting them just any old lures.
Specific makes and models are used for specific fisheries and getting the wrong lures can be a dud, present-wise. Instead, consider giving a gift card to your local tackle shop or an online retailer like alltackle.com, which has a huge selection and ships nationwide.
8. Fish art
When you need to get a gift for a fisherman who has everything, consider shopping for some cool fish art. Angling isn’t just an activity it’s a lifestyle, and those leaping marlin sculptures and paintings of predators chasing baitfish are sure to go over well. You’ll find a wide range of options on Etsy.
9. Multi-tool
Fisherfolks never know when they’ll need to tighten a screw on a reel or trim off a tag end from fishing line, so multi-tools are a great item to have in the tacklebox. Many are on the market but if your angling pal fishes in saltwater, make sure to get a multi-tool that’s corrosion-resistant and has carbide-tipped cutters.
The ones from Gerber are top-shelf, and come with a confidence-inspiring limited lifetime warranty.
10. Rent a fishing boat
Give that angler a special fishing trip by giving them a boat for a day or a group fishing charter— just about anywhere they want. Boatsetter has more than 50,000 boats in over 700 locations worldwide, so wherever he or she dreams of wetting a line, a surprise boat rental can make it happen!
Okay: get ready to do some shopping, then some wrapping, and then some smiling. Because the angler you love is bound to jump for joy when they discover that you found the gift ideas for fishermen and fisherwomen that top the charts — and these 10 best fishing gifts all hit the bullseye.
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With over three decades of experience in marine journalism, Lenny Rudow has contributed to dozens of boating and fishing publications and websites ranging from BoatU.S. Magazine to BDOutdoors.com. Rudow is currently the Angler in Chief at Rudow’s FishTalk, he is a past president of Boating Writers International (BWI), a graduate of the Westlawn School of Yacht Design, and has won numerous BWI and OWAA writing awards.
