2026 regulation year
Channel catfish Fishing Regulations by State (2026)
Ictalurus punctatus
Last updated
Channel catfish is regulated separately by each state. This page compares the open-season window, daily bag limit, and size or slot rule for channel catfish across the 26 states fishregs covers deeply for 2026 — 1 set a defined harvest season and 25 keep it open year-round. Rules vary by state and often by individual water body, so confirm on the linked state page before fishing. New to bag, slot, and size limits? The glossary explains every term.
Channel catfish regulations comparison by state
| State | Open season | Daily bag | Size / slot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Open year-round | No limit on catfish under 34 inches; only 1 catfish 34 inches or longer per day (one rule covering blue + channel + flathead combined). Exempt: the seven southeastern river basins (no 34-in cap). | No minimum size; only 1 catfish per day may be 34 inches or longer (a combined trophy cap). No 34-inch cap in the seven exempt southeastern river basins. |
| Arizona | Open year-round | 10 / day combined channel + flathead catfish (lowered from the former 25 / day in the 2024 AZGFD simplification) | No statewide minimum |
| Arkansas | Open year-round | 10 / day combined across channel + blue + flathead catfish statewide; no limit on channel catfish at Lake Erling, Marion McCollum Greenlee, Lake Chicot, Grand Lake + the Mississippi River; 10 additional channel catfish allowed on the Arkansas River | No statewide minimum size |
| Connecticut | Open year-round | 6 / day in aggregate (channel catfish + white catfish); 3 / day in aggregate on Community Fishing Waters | No minimum length |
| District of Columbia | Open year-round | 3 / day (DC DOEE, DCMR Title 19) | 12 in minimum (DC DOEE) |
| Georgia | Open year-round | No statewide limit (excluded from the 50-fish game-fish aggregate) | No statewide length limit |
| Illinois | Open year-round | No statewide daily limit; many inland lakes set a site-specific 6 / day channel-catfish limit. Mississippi River: 20 / day combined blue + channel. Ohio + Wabash Rivers: no limit on fish under 28 in, only 1 channel catfish 28 in or longer per day. | No statewide minimum. 13 in min on the Ohio + Wabash Rivers, where no more than 1 channel catfish 28 in or longer may be kept per day. |
| Indiana | Open year-round | No daily limit in rivers + streams (incl. the Ohio River); 10 / day combined catfish in lakes; no bag limit at Turtle Creek Reservoir. Only 1 channel catfish 28 in or longer may be kept per day. | 13 in min in rivers + streams (incl. the Ohio River); no minimum in lakes. No more than 1 channel catfish 28 in or longer per day. |
| Iowa | Open year-round | 8 / day combined channel + blue + flathead catfish on inland lakes (30 possession); 15 / day on interior streams + the Coralville / Rathbun / Red Rock / Saylorville reservoirs (30 possession); no daily limit on the Mississippi River (Iowa sets no separate flathead limit) | No statewide minimum on channel + blue + flathead catfish |
| Kansas | Open year-round | 10 / day per angler statewide (the most liberal catfish bag in Kansas) | No statewide length limit |
| Kentucky | Open year-round | Unlimited on channel catfish under 28 inches; only 1 channel catfish 28 inches or longer per day (trophy limit). Barren River + Carr Creek lakes: blue + channel catfish aggregate 15 / day, only 1 over 25 in. | No minimum size; a 'trophy' channel catfish is 28 inches or longer, and only 1 trophy may be kept per day. |
| Louisiana | Open year-round | 100 / day combined channel + blue + flathead (aggregate); 50 / day blue + channel combined on Caddo Lake, Sabine River, Toledo Bend (no more than 5 over 30 in) | 11 in min statewide; no minimum on Caddo Lake, Sabine River, Toledo Bend |
| Maryland | – · Nontidal waters – · Tidal / Chesapeake waters | 5 / day in nontidal waters; NO creel limit in tidal / Chesapeake waters | No minimum size statewide |
| Mississippi | Open year-round | No statewide daily creel limit; 10 / day on State Fishing Lakes + State Park Lakes (Choctaw Lake + Lake Okhissa 5 / day; ReCon Lake 10 / day); 1 fish over 34 in / day on Alabama–Tennessee border waters (Pickwick Lake) | No statewide minimum length; on Alabama–Tennessee border waters (Pickwick) no creel limit on catfish under 34 in but only 1 fish over 34 in / day |
| Missouri | Open year-round | 10 / day statewide. Mississippi River: 20 channel + blue catfish in aggregate. Lake of the Ozarks / Truman / Table Rock / Bull Shoals / Norfork: 10 catfish combined (channel + blue + flathead). | No statewide length limit |
| Nebraska | Open year-round | 5 / day in standing water (lakes / reservoirs / pits); 10 / day in flowing water (rivers / streams / canals) + the Missouri River | No minimum length; no more than one fish 30 in or longer per day (one-over-30 cap removed on the Missouri River for 2026); 15–18 in protected slot on listed metro lakes |
| North Carolina | Open year-round | No statewide daily limit on most waters; 7 / day on NCWRC community fishing ponds; 5 in combination on game-land ponds and the Pee Dee River below Blewett Falls Dam | No minimum length to keep statewide |
| North Dakota | Open year-round | 5 / day east of ND Hwy 1 (5 in possession); 20 / day west of ND Hwy 1 (40 in possession); 5 / day on the Red + Bois de Sioux rivers regardless of the number of state/provincial licenses held | No statewide minimum length; on all waters east of ND Hwy 1 (incl. the Red + Bois de Sioux rivers) only 1 channel catfish over 24 in may be taken or possessed |
| Ohio | Open year-round | No limit under 28 in; 1 / day over 28 in | No minimum length to keep |
| Oklahoma | Open year-round | 15 / day combined channel + blue catfish statewide standard; 6 / day combined on State Park / WMA / ODWC-area waters (not Lake Murray) | No statewide minimum length |
| South Carolina | Open year-round | No statewide daily creel limit (hook and line) | No statewide size limit |
| South Dakota | Open year-round | 10 / day any combination of channel + blue + flathead catfish (only one flathead 30 in or longer), 20 in possession; NO daily or possession limit on the Missouri River inland reaches (one flathead 30 in+); NE/SD border waters channel 10 / day + flathead 5 / day (one 30 in+) | No statewide minimum on channel catfish; only one flathead catfish 30 in or longer per day |
| Tennessee | Open year-round | No creel limit on catfish under 34 inches; only 1 catfish over 34 inches per day (one rule covering blue + channel + flathead combined). Mississippi River: same rule. | No length limit on catfish under 34 inches; only 1 catfish per day may exceed 34 inches. |
| Texas | Open year-round | 25 / day (channel + blue combined); only 10 may be 20 in or longer | No minimum length statewide (only 10 of the 25 daily may be 20 in or longer) |
| Virginia | Open year-round | 20 / day (Virginia lists channel, white, and flathead catfish together at 20 per day). No daily limit on all rivers below the fall line. South Holston Reservoir: 20 / day, only 1 catfish over 34 in. | No statewide length limit. South Holston Reservoir: only 1 catfish per day longer than 34 inches (applies to all catfish species). |
| West Virginia | Open year-round | 30 / day on all rivers + streams + Mt. Storm / Stonecoal / Cheat + USACE lakes; 4 / day on director-designated impoundments | No length limit |
Figures are statewide defaults for 2026. Specific lakes, rivers, and coastal zones can carry their own channel catfish rules — open any state row for the full season map, gear restrictions, and named water-body overrides.
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Frequently asked questions
- Is there a nationwide channel catfish season or bag limit?
- No. Each US state sets its own channel catfish rules. Across the 26 states covered here, 25 keep harvest open year-round while 1 defines a closed season, and daily bag and size limits differ from state to state. Use the table above to compare, then open a state page for the exact current rule.
- Does my fishing license cover channel catfish in every state?
- No. A fishing license is valid only in the state that issued it, apart from a few border-water reciprocity agreements. To fish channel catfish in another state you generally need that state's non-resident license — compare non-resident fees on the license-fees page and check the reciprocity page for shared-water exceptions.
- Why do channel catfish rules vary so much between states?
- Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) is a freshwater species, and each state manages it for its own water temperatures, spawning timing, population health, and fishing pressure. Many states also set tougher rules on specific lakes or rivers, so the statewide figure shown here can be overridden on a named water body — always confirm on the linked state page before fishing.
- Why does one state show more than one channel catfish season?
- Several states split channel catfish into management zones — different coasts, river drainages, or regions open and close on different dates. Where that happens the table shows each zone's window; the state page lists the full zone map.