Best Kids Fishing Poles | Outdoor Life

The most important part of fishing with children is being sure your kid actually catches fish. And while it’s true that anyone can catch a fish on just about anything given the right circumstances, having a quality kids fishing pole can help a lot. The chances of a 5-year old catching a fish are much higher on a short spinning pole than, say, a spey rod. 

Ultimately, the biggest mistake a parent can make is not taking their kid out at all. Kids have surprising patience for fishing if you take them to the right place and equip them with the right gear. And the best news? Kids fishing gear is surprisingly affordable, which is also great considering at some point your child will grow out of it. 

We tested several of the best kids fishing poles with the help of various children in our lives. These rods were tested by several children ages 5 to 8 on lakes and small ponds filled with various species of trout and panfish. Some of the rods were also used on lakes with walleye trolling and on high alpine streams over during the summer. Here are the kids’ top picks.

Best Kids Fishing Poles: Reviews and Recommendations

Best Youth Spinning Combo: 13 Fishing Code White Combo

Key Features

• Cork handle
• 2+1 stainless steel ball bearings in the reel 
• Soft touch knob
• Japanese 24 ton HTC blank construction

This sturdy, one-piece rod will keep your young angler on the water for seasons. It’s a really good, sturdy rod for when you’re fishing from a boat and don’t need one that collapses. It’s strong enough you can horse a fish in without worrying about breaking it and it casts well. My 6-year-old daughter muscled in a 24-inch walleye from a boat in the middle of a lake in Wyoming. The rod flexed plenty but held strong and brought the fish to a net. Know that it doesn’t come with line, so you’ll need to add your own. Bottom line: This rod is good enough to last a young person well into high school or beyond, when they’re either old enough to need another rod or have saved enough money to buy one. It’s also a decent rod for adults if you want to keep it around for yourself and any young anglers you may have along. 

Best for Beginners: Shakespeare Disney Children’s Reel and Fishing Rod Combo

Key Features

• 2-feet 6-inches 
• Comes with line
• Closed reel

This is a relatively easy fishing pole for kids to cast and use to reel in a fish, but the obvious benefit is that it comes in a variety of movie themes. It’s more durable than you would think, and is the perfect way to get a young child started. Our daughter happened to be going through a Frozen phase. She has caught innumerable fish from the end of its line using everything from big dry flies to a worm under a bobber. The button allows kids to learn how to let out line as they cast. The line is relatively durable as is the rod, and because the line feeds through eyelets, it helps them learn to be more conscious of tangles without having serious issues with tangles. It can also cast farther than you would think for its length. But because it’s short, even a 4 or 5 year old can handle it well. We’ve used that rod on lakes and rivers across Wyoming and the West for several years. It also works for ice fishing for kids, or, as we’ve discovered, adults. That’s why it’s my recommendation as one of the best kids fishing poles.

Best for Toddlers:  Kid Casters Tangle-Free Youth Kids Fishing Pole 

Key Features 

• Materials: fiberglass
• Length: 34 inches
• Reel: Spincast
• Line feeds through fishing pole
• Comes with casting plug and safety hook
• Variety of colors

This all-in-one, tangle-free combo is perfect for teaching the tiniest anglers the coordination, patience, and confidence necessary for successful fishing. The 34-inch rod doesn’t have traditional line guides. Instead, the fishing line goes through the rod shaft to prevent frustrating line tangles. That means kids can spend more time fishing, and you’ll spend less time fixing messy snarls. The combo also comes with a safety hook and a practice casting plug, so kids can practice casting basics right in the backyard. No water required. 

This was the first fishing pole I used with my daughter, and she started casting off a bridge with it shortly after she learned to walk. She wasn’t casting so much as pushing the button and watching the plastic fish at the bottom drop into the river, but because she was so young, that fish made her feel as though she was getting something. It also gave her experience holding a rod and reeling to begin building some of those motor skills. When she was 3, she used it to reel in northern pike from a boat on a lake in Alaska. To be clear, this isn’t a good rod for kids long term. You will need something different as they age, and I don’t know if I would buy it for a first-time 12-year-old angler, but for those kids who are getting started young, it’s a great fit. 

Best for Bank Fishing: Ugly Stik Dock Runner

Key Features

• Materials: graphite and fiberglass combo
• Length: 3 feet
• Reel: 30 size spinning reel (spincast option available)

This rod and reel combo from Ugly Stik was a major hit among young anglers fishing from the shoreline. It is incredibly durable, and the short rod is easy for small bodies to handle. It also works well as an ice fishing combo, because the petite pole is easy to maneuver in the compact confines of an ice shanty. The size 30 spinning reel from Shakespeare comes pre-spooled with 6-pound test line. The reel casts like a dream, and the short rod length also makes this combo perfect for dock or kayak fishing, whether or not you’re over eighteen. — Alice Jones Webb

Best Spin Fishing Kit: Shakespeare Catch More Fish Youth Spinning Rod 

Key Features

• Aluminum spool with 4-pound monofilament line
• Comes with bait and tackle
• 2-piece
• 5 feet

This handy, two-piece kids fishing pole is made for collapsing and carting around. It also handles well for kids and adults. We used this rod on two backpacking trips into the Wind River Range in central Wyoming, lugging it well over 50 backcountry miles, and it held up well. The reel and line cast smoothly for kids. While it’s a little long and big for young kids, it is a great fit for budding anglers in early elementary school up through middle or even high school. At 5 feet, the rod is easy to handle and has a nice action. The elastic in the rod helps keep your pieces together, as do the bungee straps. 

Best Budget Youth Fly Rod: White River Fly Shop Cricket Fly Rod 

Key Features

• 8-feet long
• 5 weight
• Bright yellow 
• 2-piece graphite  

If you want a cheap fly rod that punches above its weight for a budding fly angler in your house—especially if you have a reel sitting around you can use along with it—this may fit the bill.The White River Fly Shop Cricket Fly Rod is one of the best beginner fly rods for a house that already has fly anglers and fly fishing gear because you’ll need a reel, fly line, backing, and leader to complete the outfit. If you don’t have those items handy you can always add them to the cart and spool your line by watching an instructional video. 

At around $50, it’s a little more money than some of the cheaper fly rod and reel kits, but the rod is surprisingly durable. I strapped it to the outside of my backpacking backpack for a 7-mile trek into the Wind River Range in Wyoming and it held up well. It doesn’t come with a rod tube, and I wasn’t sure how it would handle the trip and associated fishing and bushwhacking. I didn’t baby it like my Sage and Orvis rods and it held up well. An 8-year old on the trip used it to catch and reel in a handful of Colorado River cutthroat trout using dry flies. Even for adults, the rod’s casting action is pretty fun using everything from small dry flies to larger grasshopper imitations. Be aware that it is a two-piece rod. It’s also a little heavy for a small child, but worked perfect for young anglers eager to try fly casting. The yellow color (listed as the color “fun”) was also popular for each of our little fisherwomen. 

Things to Consider When Buying Fishing Poles for Kids

How old is your child?

Older kids will have a slightly easier time with a fly rod because they can understand the concept better than a 2 or 3 year old. The younger the child the fewer things you want them to think about, which makes a spinning rod with a closed reel and a button easier for younger kids and a fly rod or open-faced spinning rod easier for older kids. Certainly they can all use either, but for ease of beginning, consider the child’s age. 

How much experience does your child have?

Has your kid fished before? A child who has grown up fishing might be ready for a fly rod a little earlier than someone who is just starting. They also might have a better idea of how to manage line and how to reel, which means you could buy a longer, open-faced reel instead of a smaller, simpler, closed-face one. 

Where will you be fishing?

Will you be fishing on a lake from a boat or will you be fishing on streams or the side of kids’ fishing ponds? If there’s much brush behind you, consider spinning rods before fly rods because there’s less for the child to catch behind them. If you’ll be trolling from a boat you’ll want a stronger rod than if you’re casting into a pond or a smaller lake. 

FAQs

Final Thoughts on the Best Kids Fishing Poles

After using half a dozen or more rods with my child and fished with a number of other kids with various fishing poles, we can say buying one of the best kids fishing poles is important. We still allow our children to use our fly rods in certain circumstances, but most kids prefer to have a rod and reel that fits their smaller bodies and allows them and to take ownership of their fishing adventures.