
If you’re passionate about freshwater fishing, one of the most popular fish to catch are crappie. Crappie are widely regarded one of the best tasting freshwater fish, but to maximize your chance at catching them you’ll need to use a crappie fishing rod.
Crappie tend to be skittish fish, so stealth is a helpful skill when trying to get one on your line. Crappie fishing rods tend to be the longest fishing poles, which offers great benefits and increases your chance of catching a crappie. But you also need a crappie pole that is durable and reliable.
Below, we’ve reviewed the eight best crappie fishing rods that are perfect for luring and catching crappie. We have also included a buying guide that highlights what qualities and features to look for when buying a crappie rod.
Best Spinning Crappie Rods
Candence CR5 Spinning
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Great for versatile fishermen who explore freshwater and saltwater locations
- 30-ton carbon gives it super smooth power in a lightweight fishing rod
- FUJI handle offers a comfortable and firm grip for reeling in catches
- Stainless steel guides maximize sensitivity to feel any bites or nudges from a fish
Product Dimensions: 78 x 2.4 x 2.4 inches
Length: 7 feet 0 inches
Material: Carbon, stainless steel
Action: Fast
Pieces: 1
Handle Type: Split
Guides: 7 + tip
Line Weight: 6-12 pounds
Lure Weight: 1/8 – 5/8 ounces
Weight of Rod: 1.76 ounces
Best Lightweight Crappie Rods
St Croix Premier Spinning
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Made of graphite, which is lightweight
- High quality components like a comfortable base and cork handle offer the best fishing experience
- Strong grip for reeling in fighting fish
Length: 7 feet
Material: Graphite, aluminum oxide
Action: Medium fast
Pieces: 1
Handle Type: Full cork
Power: Light
Line Weight: 4-10 pounds
Lure Weight: 1/8 – ½ ounces
Best Balanced Crappie Rod
St Croix Panfish Series
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Two graphite materials make this lightweight and sensitive
- Stainless steel Pay May Minima guides offer great sensitivity and help save 20-30% in weight
- Cork handle lets you feel vibrations and is comfortable to hold
- 5-year warranty included with purchase
Length: 6 feet
Material: Graphite, cork, stainless steel
Action: Fast
Pieces: 1
Handle Type: Full cork
Power: Ultra-light
Line Weight: 4-6 pounds
Best Budget-Friendly Crappie Rod
Lew’s 2 Piece Slab Daddy
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- EVA foam handle grips are comfortable for an all-day long trip
- Stainless-steel hook grippers perfectly guide your line and keep it tangle free
- Two-piece design is easily portable for the traveling fishermen
Length: 9 feet
Material: Fiberglass, stainless steel
Pieces: 2
Handle Type: EVA foam
Line Weight: 4-10 pounds
Best Versatile Crappie Rod
Shakespeare Light Power
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Enhances crappie fishing techniques with the combo fishing rod and spinning reel design
- A lightweight graphite construction and aluminum spool make it durable
- 4-pound fishing line reels in smoothly
- A multi-disk drag system and anti-reverse gives you all the power you need to reel in fish
Length: 9 foot
Material: Graphite, aluminum
Pieces: 2
Line Weight: 4 pounds
Spinning Reel: size 25
Material: Graphite
Best Comfortable Crappie Rod
Fenwick Elite River Runner
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Hidden handle design is comfortable because you can’t feel the threads
- A titanium frame makes it extremely lightweight and durable
- Virtually indestructible for the adventurous fishermen
- Cork handle has a solid grip even in wet conditions
Length: 8 feet
Material: Titanium, cork
Pieces: 2
Power: Ultra-light
Best Beginner Crappie Rod
B’n’M Duck Commander Ultralite
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Modulus graphite is strong and durable
- Portuguese cork handle has a secure grip
- Dyna-Flo stainless steel guides keep your line straight and secure
- Perfect balance and action make it great for beginning fishermen
Length: 6 feet
Material: Graphite, Portuguese cork, stainless steel
Pieces: 2
Power: Ultralite
Action: Ultralite
Best Ambidextrous Crappie Rod
Zebco Combo Reel
- Stand Out Features - Why We Love It
- Right or left hand retrieve, so you can choose which hand you want to work the reel
- Metal gears are extremely durable
- An anti-reverse feature makes fishing line controlled and smooth
Product Dimensions: 4 x 5 x 55 inches
Material: Metal
Length: 8 feet
Pieces: 2
Power: Light
Action: Light
Line Weight: 6 pounds
How To Choose A Crappie Rod – Buying Guide
The best fishing rod for crappie will depend on how lightweight it is and what adventures you plan on taking it on. Below are the most important features when choosing good crappie rods.
Material
Ultralight crappie rods are the best and the lightest material that is still extremely durable is graphite. Graphite is a very lightweight material, which is great for the longer lengths of crappie fishing rods. It also is hyper sensitive, which means that any small nudges or bites from a fish, you can feel along the length of the crappie pole.
Power
Crappie are a smaller sized fish. The majority will max out at 8 inches in length, but the average is 4 inches. Due to their small size, you don’t need a crappie pole with a lot of power. Plus, with more power you lose sensitivity, which can be a huge drawback for crappie fishing. An ultralight or light crappie pole would be best, which means that it takes only a little pressure to make the rod bend.
Action
The action of a fishing pole is the speed at which the tip of the rod returns back to the straight position after it has been flexed. The three types of action are slow, medium, and fast. For crappie fishing rods, slow action is best even though you do lose some sensitivity. This is because a slow action is able to absorb more of the shock from you pulling the rod, which is less likely to rip the hook out of the fish’s mouth. You will commonly see crappie fishing poles with ultralight to light and medium light power, which is the best for these delicate fish.
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Length
The length of a crappie pole will be up to personal preference and where you will be fishing. Some good crappie rods are up to 16 feet in length, which is about the longest fishing rod you’ll ever find, but others are a standard size that cap at about 10 feet in length. Generally, the further you want to cast, the longer your crappie pole should be. But keep in mind that you’ll sacrifice weight and portability with a longer design.
On the other hand, crappie are a species that tend to like to hide in shallow waters with lots of plants and rocks to hide. This can mean you’re constantly having to avoid tangled or caught fishing line, which can be frustrating. A longer crappie fishing rod can allow you to sneak up on where crappie are hiding and simply drop your line into the water, without having to cast. This can be a huge advantage if you’ve found where the crappie are hiding, which is why longer crappie fishing rods are also a popular choice.
Line and Lure Weight
To match ultralight crappie rods, you’ll want to use a lightweight line and lure too. The best crappie baits and lures will be light so that they don’t tear the fish’s mouth and won’t weigh down your crappie pole. A heavy fishing line can also cause too much movement that it scares them away, but heavier line is okay to use in muddy water.
Guide
Guides are the rings that are placed on a fishing pole to keep the fishing line in place. Good crappie rods will use stainless steel guides because they are lightweight but durable, which is important when you want to keep your fishing line in order.
Handle
Crappie fishing rods should have a handle that is easy to use, control, and is comfortable because it will be the guide for your crappie pole, and you will rely on its durability to reel in a catch. Some crappie poles have a padded or cushioned handle, which can make it much more comfortable for the user to spend the day fishing.
FAQs
Q: What is a crappie rod and what is it used for?
A crappie pole is a specific type of fishing rod that is designed to be used with crappie fish or other small fish species. They are ultralight and durable, which makes them great for crappie fishing. While crappie fishing rods can be used with other small fish species, they give some great advantages specifically for catching the skittish crappie.
Q: What is the difference between a regular and crappie rod?
The biggest difference in crappie fishing rods and regular fishing is the length of the actual pole. Crappie fishing rods are the longest designs on the market with some reaching up to 16 feet in length. For crappie fishermen, this gives them an advantage of sneaking up on the fish and greater casting abilities.
Q: Are all crappie rods the same?
No. Not all crappie rods have the same features, like length and material. Most crappie rods will be anywhere from 6 to 16 feet long and may be made of a mixture of materials. The best crappie rod will be made of graphite because it is lightweight and durable, but more affordable designs may be made of both fiberglass and graphite. While not all crappie rods are the same, they should be very similar and have features like being ultralight, slow action, and have minimal power.
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Fishing is one of the great outdoor sports that anyone can enjoy, and crappie are some of the most flavorful freshwater fish you can catch. With a crappie pole, you can increase your chances of catching a tasty meal. We hope that our guide will help you find the perfect crappie rod that will stay by your side for years to come.
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