What Weight Fly Rod for Salmon? 8 to 10 Weight Explained

The short answer

Pick a 9-weight if you want one salmon rod. Tackle Village's table gives 8 to 10 for salmon, Field & Stream's best weight for steelhead and salmon is an 8, and Trident Fly Fishing puts kings at 9 or 10. So the spread is 8 to 10, and the 9 sits in the middle of it.

Two-handed rods are numbered by a different scale and are common on big salmon rivers. See spey rods for those and fly rods for single-hand rods.

Field & Stream's view

Field & Stream names the 8-weight as the best for steelhead and salmon, and says it will not be too much for smaller fish and might be just barely enough for bigger ones. It adds that these fish put a sharp bend in a heavy rod, and that many anglers use long two-handed rods for them, with single-hand equivalent line weights closer to 12. The 8 also doubles as a rod for pike, carp, striped bass and other fish too big for trout gear. Our 8-weight rods page lists them.

Pacific salmon

Trident Fly Fishing gives figures by species:

Species	Single-hand	Two-handed
King (Chinook)	9 or 10 ft, 9 to 10 weight	13 to 15 ft, 9 to 10 weight on larger rivers; 12 to 14 ft, 8 to 9 weight on smaller ones
Silver (coho)	9 to 10 ft, 8 or 9 weight	12 to 13 ft, 6 to 8 weight
Chum	8 weight works; 9 suggested for large rivers	13 ft, 7 weight for silver and chum on the same trip; 8 weight for chum alone
Sockeye	8 weight	not addressed
Pink	6 weight may work	not addressed

Trident's note on pinks is that a 6-weight may work, though a sockeye could take a while to land on it. (Gary read "6 weight may work," bought a 6-weight and hooked a sockeye in a run full of them. Gary now knows what "a while" means.)

Atlantic salmon

An outfitter's guide published by ADH Fishing, written for Atlantic salmon, gives recommendations by river size:

• Small rivers: single-handed rods of class 7 or higher, switch rods of class 6/7 or higher, or light double-handed rods of class 7/8 or 8/9 up to 13 feet.
• Medium rivers: double-handed rods of class 8/9 or 9/10, 13 to 14 feet.
• Large rivers: double-handed rods of class 9/10, 10/11 or 11/12, 14 to 15 feet.

For a versatile setup, it recommends a class 9/10 double-hander of about 14 feet. It gives no length for single-hand rods by river size. Read "class 8/9" as a two-handed rod rated for a range of line weights, and see spey vs switch rods for how lengths are labeled.

Single-hand or two-handed

A single-hand rod is simpler and cheaper to cast on small water, and is what Trident lists first for each Pacific species. A two-handed rod gives you the long casts and line control a big river needs. Our what is a spey rod guide explains the cast. If you are unsure, the river decides: small and brushy favors the single-hand 8 or 9, wide and open favors the two-hander.

Where salmon sit on the scale

Tackle Village's table puts trout in streams and rivers at 3 to 6, steelhead at 7 to 9, salmon at 8 to 10, carp at 7 to 10 and northern pike and musky at 8 to 12. Salmon therefore sit a full step above steelhead and well above trout. If you already own an 8-weight for steelhead or carp, it is the low end of the salmon range, not a stretch. If you own a 5-weight for trout, it is not a salmon rod, and our fly rod weight chart guide explains why the numbers jump. Remember that the figures are one retailer's guide, and the Pacific and Atlantic sources above are more specific.

How to choose

• Small salmon, moderate rivers: 8-weight.
• One all-round salmon rod: 9-weight.
• Kings, large rivers, heavy flies or wind: 10-weight, or a two-handed rod.
• Atlantic salmon on medium or large rivers: a two-handed rod of class 8/9 to 9/10 or above, per the ADH guide.

Line weight and reel capacity matter as much as the rod. A running salmon can take line, so check backing capacity on the reel. See fly reels and our fly rod weight chart. For tactics and flies, read fly fishing for salmon; for the neighboring fish, what weight fly rod for steelhead.

Fish don't read spec sheets. You should.