Flounder fishing tips: the fall run, best tides, baits, rigs and gigging

Flounder fishing tips for the Atlantic and Gulf coasts: the fall flounder run, best tides and time of day, live bait and soft plastics, Carolina rigs and bucktails, where flounder hold, and night gigging.

Flounder are ambush predators: they bury in the sand with only their eyes showing and wait for baitfish to swim past. Find the right spot on the right tide and they bite surprisingly well. In the fall, when flounder migrate out of bays toward the ocean to spawn, the action can be outstanding. These flounder fishing tips will help you find and catch them.

Know your flounder

Species	Range
Southern flounder	North Carolina to Texas; the Gulf's main species
Summer flounder ("fluke")	Massachusetts to the Carolinas
Gulf flounder	Gulf coast and South Atlantic, more often in clear water and near reefs
Winter flounder	New England and the Mid-Atlantic; smaller and bottom-feeding

When to fish: the fall flounder run

Region	Best time
Gulf coast (Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida)	October to November, as fish move through passes toward the Gulf
Carolinas and Georgia	Late September to November in inlets and passes
Mid-Atlantic and New England (fluke)	Late spring to early fall inshore

Cold fronts trigger the run: water temperatures dropping into the 60s °F push flounder toward the passes. Many states close or restrict flounder fishing during part of the run to protect spawning fish (Texas, for example, has a November closure, and other states have their own seasons). Always check your state's current regulations.

Where flounder hold

Flounder sit where current brings food to them:

Inlets, passes and channel edges
Drop-offs and sandbar edges
Creek mouths and drains on a falling tide
Docks, bridge pilings and jetties
Grass edges next to sandy bottom

Look for current breaks: a flounder wants to lie out of the current but next to it.

Best tides and time of day

Moving water is essential. The falling tide that drains creeks and flats into deeper water is classic.
Tide changes in passes and inlets often trigger a bite.
Dawn and dusk are productive, but tide beats time of day.

The stronger tides around the new and full moon move more bait and can concentrate flounder at passes. Learn more in our tides and solunar saltwater fishing guide.

Best baits and lures

Live mud minnows and finger mullet: the top flounder baits.
Live shrimp: good everywhere but attracts everything else too.
Soft plastics on a jig head (paddle tails, Gulp! swimming mullet): bounced slowly along the bottom.
Bucktail jigs tipped with a strip of squid or fish: classic for fluke.

Rigs

Carolina rig: a ½–1 oz sliding egg sinker, swivel, 18–24 inches of fluorocarbon leader and a 1/0–2/0 circle or kahle hook. Drag it slowly along the bottom.
Jig head and soft plastic: ¼–½ oz, hopped and dragged downcurrent.
Fluke rig: bucktail with a teaser above it for summer flounder in deeper water.

How to hook flounder

Flounder often grab the bait sideways and hold it before swallowing. When you feel the bite:

Wait a few seconds (count to 5–10 with live bait).
Feel for weight and then reel tight and set the hook.
Use a net: flounder often shake loose at the surface.

With circle hooks, just reel steadily.

Night gigging

Where legal, gigging is a traditional way to harvest flounder: wading or drifting a boat along shallow flats at night with a bright light and spotting flounder on the bottom. Calm, clear water and a low, falling tide make the best gigging nights. Check gigging regulations in your state, since some limit or prohibit it during the fall run.

Plan with Solunar

Solunar shows sunrise, sunset, moon phase and solunar windows on one 24-hour dial with a 1–4 star day rating for your exact pass or pier, offline. Pair it with your tide table and the first strong front of the fall.