2026 regulation year
Smallmouth bass Fishing Regulations by State (2026)
Micropterus dolomieu
Last updated
Smallmouth bass is regulated separately by each state. This page compares the open-season window, daily bag limit, and size or slot rule for smallmouth bass across the 35 states fishregs covers deeply for 2026 — 12 set a defined harvest season and 23 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.
Smallmouth bass regulations comparison by state
| State | Open season | Daily bag | Size / slot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Open year-round | 10 / day combined black bass | 12 in min statewide; 15 in min Tennessee River main stem (Guntersville/Wheeler/Wilson/Pickwick) |
| Arizona | Open year-round | 6 / day combined black bass no statewide minimum (AZGFD-distinctive aggressive smallmouth harvest to protect native razorback sucker + Colorado pikeminnow + bonytail + humpback chub ESA-listed natives); Lake Powell 20 / day; Lake Havasu 13 in minimum | No statewide minimum (AZGFD-distinctive — encourages harvest of smallmouth in Lower Colorado River + Salt River chain to protect native ESA-listed Colorado River fishes); Lake Havasu 13 in minimum |
| Arkansas | Open year-round | 4 / day statewide; 2 / day on AGFC Ozark / Boston Mountain / Ouachita Zone Quality + Blue Ribbon streams; 1 / day on 18-in trophy reaches; 6 / day reservoir black-bass combined | 12 in min in the Ozark Zone, 10 in elsewhere (statewide); 14 in on Ozark Zone Blue Ribbon + Quality streams; 12 in on Boston Mountain + Ouachita Zone Quality streams; 18 in on trophy reaches; 15 in on Beaver / Bull Shoals / Table Rock, 12 in on Ouachita / DeGray / Greeson reservoirs |
| Connecticut | – · Statewide standard waters – · Designated Bass Management Lakes (Bantam, Candlewood, East Twin, others) | 6 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) statewide; 0 / day Bass Management Lakes April 1 – June 15 | 12 in min statewide; 16 in min on listed trophy reservoirs |
| District of Columbia | – · Non-tidal Potomac upstream of Chain Bridge + C&O Canal + Rock Creek | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) — DC standard | 12 in min DC standard |
| Idaho | Open year-round | 6 / day no statewide minimum (IDFG-distinctive aggressive harvest rule — smallmouth managed as invasive non-native species in the Snake River drainage) | No statewide minimum (IDFG-distinctive — encourages harvest to reduce predation pressure on native salmon + steelhead + cutthroat) |
| Illinois | Open year-round | 6 / day combined black bass statewide, no more than 3 smallmouth / day in rivers + streams; all smallmouth released Apr 1 – Jun 15 in most rivers; Kankakee 12–18 in protected slot, 3 / day | No statewide minimum length; Mississippi River 12–14 in by pool (14 in IL/IA, 12 in IL/MO); 12 in min Ohio + Wabash boundary water; 21 in min Lake Michigan; site-specific minimums + protected slots on listed lakes |
| Indiana | – · Statewide | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth + spotted) statewide; 6 / day Ohio River main stem; 3 / day Lake Michigan IN waters | Rivers + streams 12–15 in protected slot (release 12–15 in, keep ≤ 2 over 15 in); lakes/reservoirs 14 in min; flat 12 in min in the 13 Ohio-River-border counties + Ohio River main stem; 14 in min Lake Michigan IN waters; 15 in min Patoka; 20 in min / 1 fish Sugar Creek + Turtle Creek (trophy) |
| Iowa | Open year-round | 3 / day inland lakes + interior streams (6 possession); 5 / day on the boundary rivers — Mississippi + Missouri (10 possession) — combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth + spotted) | 15 in min on public lakes (incl. the Iowa Great Lakes + USACE reservoirs) except as posted; 14 in min on the Mississippi River; 12 in min on interior streams; catch-and-release on posted Driftless reaches (Upper Iowa below Decorah, Cedar, Maquoketa, Middle Raccoon) |
| Kansas | Open year-round | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth + spotted) | 15 in min statewide (including Wilson Lake + Cedar Bluff); 21 in min on Glen Elder Reservoir; 18 in min on Big Hill + Clinton + Perry + Melvern + La Cygne |
| Kentucky | Open year-round | 6 / day combined black bass | 12 in min statewide; 18 in min Dale Hollow + Lake Cumberland |
| Maine | – · South Zone lakes & ponds – · North Zone lakes & ponds – · Listed pre-spawn C&R artificial-only waters | North Zone: no daily limit; South Zone: 2 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) | No minimum length statewide; in the South Zone only 1 of the 2 fish may exceed 14 in |
| Maryland | – · Statewide standard waters | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) statewide | 12 in min statewide; 12 in min Deep Creek Lake + Youghiogheny Reservoir + Potomac non-tidal |
| Massachusetts | Open year-round | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) | 12 in min statewide; no closed season |
| Michigan | – · Catch-and-release window – · Harvest window (Lake St. Clair June 20) | 5 / day (combined with largemouth) | 14 in minimum |
| Minnesota | Open year-round | 6 / day (smallmouth + largemouth combined) | No statewide minimum; lake-specific slots applySlot: Per-lake protected slots on designated waters (e.g. Mille Lacs trophy-smallmouth slot) |
| Mississippi | Open year-round | 10 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth + spotted); per-lake creel varies on managed waters | No statewide minimum length; Pickwick Lake harvest 15 in & under (bass over 15 in protected); Aberdeen + Columbus Lakes (Tenn-Tom) 14 in & under |
| Missouri | – · Impoundments + year-round-harvest streams – · Ozark + non-Ozark stream harvest season | 6 / day combined black bass statewide; on Special Management Area stream reaches only 1 of the 6 may be a smallmouth | 12 in min on streams statewide (no statewide minimum on impoundments unless posted); 15 in min smallmouth on Special Management Area stream reaches (Big Piney + Gasconade + Meramec + Big River + Elk + James + listed Ozark streams) |
| Montana | Open year-round | Western Fishing District 15 / day; Central + Eastern Fishing District 5 / day (FWP-distinctive — bass non-native to MT, harvest encouraged); Bighorn Lake (Yellowtail Reservoir) 10 / day | No size limit (FWP-distinctive — encourages harvest, contrasts with traditional smallmouth-managing states) |
| Nebraska | Open year-round | 5 / day combined aggregate black bass (largemouth + smallmouth + spotted) | 15 in min + no more than one over 21 in statewide on inland waters; no minimum + one over 15 in on the NPPD Sutherland–Maloney canal; 12-inch MAXIMUM (harvest only fish under 12 in) at Big Elk + Portal lakes |
| Nevada | Open year-round | 6 / day combined black bass no statewide minimum on Lake Mead + Lake Mohave under AZ/NV joint compact + Lake Tahoe under CA/NV joint compact; 6 / day combined no statewide minimum elsewhere | No statewide minimum on most waters; reach-specific quality + trophy regulations on listed waters |
| New Hampshire | – · Statewide standard waters | 2 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) statewide (one of the lowest in the country) | 12 in min statewide; 16 in min Lake Sunapee TROPHY MANAGEMENT |
| New York | – · Harvest window statewide | 5 / day (smallmouth + largemouth combined) | 12 in minimum statewide |
| North Carolina | Open year-round | 5 / day counted in aggregate with largemouth bass (the 5-fish daily limit covers largemouth + smallmouth combined, not 5 of each) | 14-inch minimum length, except only 2 of the 5-fish daily limit may be under 14 inches |
| North Dakota | Open year-round | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) | No statewide length limit anywhere in North Dakota |
| Ohio | Open year-round | 5 / day combined with largemouth (black bass) | 14 in minimum Lake Erie; 12 in minimum most inland waters |
| Oregon | Open year-round | 10 / day no statewide minimum on most waters; 5 / day with 14 in min + only 1 fish over 18 in TROPHY MANAGEMENT on Columbia + Willamette + Umpqua listed Quality Management reaches | 14 in min + 18 in trophy slot on listed Quality Management reaches; no statewide minimum elsewhereSlot: Columbia + Willamette + Umpqua Quality Management 5 / day with 14 in min + only 1 fish over 18 in TROPHY MANAGEMENT — protects trophy smallmouth fishery near Portland + Salem + Eugene urban areas; Snake River Zone 6 / day with a 12–16 in no-harvest bass slot on listed reaches (Oxbow Reservoir + Snake mainstem) + a 12 in minimum on Brownlee Reservoir |
| Pennsylvania | – | 5 / day combined with largemouth (black bass) | 12 in minimum statewide; 14 in min Lake Erie; 15 in min on Big Bass Program waters |
| South Dakota | Open year-round | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) | No statewide minimum (including on the Missouri River reservoirs); 15 in min on Lake Mitchell + Lake Yankton; 14–18 in protected slot on New Wall Dam |
| Tennessee | Open year-round | 5 / day combined black bass | 18 in min Dale Hollow + Center Hill + Norris + Old Hickory + Watauga; 15 in min Tennessee River main stem + statewide elsewhere |
| Vermont | – · Statewide open harvest season – · Statewide spawning closure — catch-and-release ONLY artificial-lures-only | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth) during open harvest second Saturday of June through November 30 | 10 in min statewide; 12 in min Lake Champlain |
| Virginia | Open year-round | 5 / day combined black bass (largemouth + smallmouth + spotted) | 11 in min statewide; 14 in min on listed trophy stream reaches (James River trophy reaches + New River + listed waters) |
| Washington | Open year-round | Lakes / ponds / reservoirs: 10 / day, no minimum size, only 1 smallmouth over 14 in may be retained. Rivers / streams / beaver ponds: no size or daily limit. Columbia River mouth → Chief Joseph Dam (545 mi): all daily + size limits suspended (WDFW invasive-removal rule, effective March 3) to increase harvest of non-native bass that prey on ESA-listed juvenile salmon + steelhead. | No minimum size statewide. In lakes / ponds / reservoirs only 1 smallmouth over 14 in may be retained (quality-protection rule). No size limit in rivers / streams / beaver ponds or the Columbia mainstem invasive-removal reach.Slot: Lakes / ponds / reservoirs — only 1 smallmouth bass over 14 in may be retained within the 10-fish daily limit (protects larger fish); no upper-size protection in rivers or the Columbia invasive-removal reach. |
| West Virginia | Open year-round | 6 / day combined black bass (most waters); New River Gorge reach 0 / day (C&IR only) | 12 in min statewide; 14 in min New River + Greenbrier River; New River Gorge reach C&IR only |
| Wisconsin | – · Northern zone harvest – · Southern zone harvest | 5 / day (smallmouth + largemouth combined) | 14 in minimum statewide |
Figures are statewide defaults for 2026. Specific lakes, rivers, and coastal zones can carry their own smallmouth bass rules — open any state row for the full season map, gear restrictions, and named water-body overrides.
Related views
Compare other species
Frequently asked questions
- Is there a nationwide smallmouth bass season or bag limit?
- No. Each US state sets its own smallmouth bass rules. Across the 35 states covered here, 23 keep harvest open year-round while 12 define 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 smallmouth bass 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 smallmouth bass 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 smallmouth bass rules vary so much between states?
- Smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) 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 smallmouth bass season?
- Several states split smallmouth bass 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.