When you are fishing offshore or inshore you want to make sure that the saltwater lures you are using are not only the best but that they also work. They may be the best money can buy but if they do not work and help you catch fish, then it was money thrown away. Some of the best saltwater fishing lures that actually work includes the bucktail jig, crankbait, hammered spoon, and more.

Best Saltwater Fishing Lures That Actually Work

Bucktail Jig

No matter what type of water you are fishing or where you are, the old-fashioned bucktail jig is hard to beat. You can fish with these using a variety of retrieves in both deep moving and shallow saltwater. It has a simple design that will give you a wide versatility range when you fish with them. If you are fishing and not sure what lure to use, grab this one as something will generally eat it. They are made of a painted lead jig head hook with deer tail hair tied onto the hair shake. They come in various color combinations, weights, and sizes. They are especially good when you are fishing in rocky areas or the surf.

Check out our article featuring the Best Bucktail Jigs.

Flutter Jig

This lure is irresistible to predators all over the world in all depths of water. They are designed to be fished with a vertical walk-the-dog action. A fisherman will find that they are effective on the retrieve and the fall. Their versatility and distinctive action make this saltwater lure an essential lure for any tackle box.

Crankbait

This saltwater fishing lure is great for catching bass. When you use them, the small beads inside of these hard baits will rattle to attract their prey. This action will make the fish think that they are getting an easy meal. They are simple to work and will work especially well in off-color water.

Check out the Best Crankbait Lures for Bass Fishing.

Hammered Spoon

This type of spoon saltwater lure is as effective as the traditional casting spoons. These are designed to run relatively shallow. The jigging spoons offer the same enticement with all the attributes and effectiveness of a spoon in the deeper water.

Popper

If you need to raise a ruckus to draw fish to your hook the surface popper is generally the best bet. Most predators prefer to have prey that is easy to capture. When the popper is retrieved erratically, the sound of it will draw the attention of the fish and makes them think it is an easy meal. This is something that game fish cannot ignore.

Learn How to Fish a Popper Lure.

Lipped Plug

Sometimes having a lure that swims erratically will draw the most strikes but other times, the action that is most appealing to predators is a steady swimming action. With the lipped plugs, they will do both. All you need to do is alter the retrieve. You can make this lure look like it is forage that is trying to get away or like a wounded baitfish.

Soft Plastic

This is a large family of artificial saltwater lures in endless configurations that mimic just about every crustacean or forage fish in the ocean. They can be rigged with lead heads or weedless. The lead heads can be shrimp, worms, grubs, shrimp, eels, or some simple attractors. They offer unmatched versatility in artificial lures.

Spoon

Most predatory fish will often have to react quickly to catch their foods. A one-element flash can entice a fish to strike at your hook. Spoons come in a variety of styles and colors and are effective as saltwater fishing lures that work. Most of these can be cast long distances. This is what makes them a good prospecting lure when fishing in unfamiliar water. When you look at a spoon artificial lure, it does not look like anything that fish would eat but when it is retrieved it wobbles, making it something that a fish cannot resist trying to eat. For inshore fishing, use the gold and silver one and that has a treble hook.

Sinking Twitch Bait

If your target fish does not want to feed on the surface, the ticket to catching a fish can be the sinking twitch bait. All you need to do is give a slight twitch of the rod and the lure will dart from right to left on the retrieve, mimicking an injured baitfish. This makes an easy mark for a hungry fish.

Top Water Jerkbait

There is no greater feeling than working jerk bait on the surface using a walk-the-dog action and having a large, aggressive fish explode onto your hook. This type of lure is tailor-made for this type of retrieve. To get it just right, it will probably take some practice but when you do you will be able to get some great catches and awesome eats.

Berkley Gulp Shrimp

There are not many saltwater game fish that will not eat shrimp. This is one of the best artificial shrimp lures you can purchase. You can use them for jigging in deeper water or fishing the grass flats. They come in a variety of colors but the ones that seem to work the best are the penny colored one and the white one.

Conclusion

There are many different saltwater lures that you can choose from but it is hard to know if they work or not. This list of saltwater fishing lures are some of the best and really do work. You just need to know the type of fish you are trying to catch and the type of water you will be fishing in. Although these lures do work in getting fish to bite, you may have to try several to find the ones that work best for you and your style of fishing. There may be other saltwater fishing lures that did not get on this list that do work. Put some of these lures in your tackle box and enjoy your day out on the water fishing and bringing home enough fish to feed your friends and family.