FishingBooker, the world’s largest platform for booking fishing trips, determined the Best US Fishing States list by combining their internal data with information from publicly available sources, and Virginia ranks in the top half at number 19, way above well-known fishing states like Texas at number 30.
Why did Virginia rank so well?
Virginia scored top marks (10 out of 10 points) in three of the ranking criteria, so it’s no wonder it earned its place in the top half. These categories were Saltwater Participation, Freshwater Participation, and User Recommendation for Fishing in the State (FishingBooker internal data). Virginia also earned high marks in two more categories: User State Ranking (FishingBooker internal data) and Price of Annual Non-Resident Fishing License with 7 points each.
Methodology
FishingBooker’s extensive research of the US’s fishing opportunities yielded 17 different ranking criteria. Out of these, five criteria were based on FishingBooker’s internal data from hundreds of thousands of fishing trips, reviews, and reports in the past year. The remaining twelve criteria come from publicly available data sources.

Once the criteria were established, they were grouped into four separate categories – Anglers’ Interest, Facilities, Financial, and Geography. Once the scores were calculated, weighted, and summed up, we got the ultimate list of US states with their fishing potential ranked from best to worst.
The complete list of the Best US Fishing States for 2023 can be found here. On this page, you can also read more about the criteria, research methodology, and key takeaways.
About FishingBooker
FishingBooker is the world’s largest platform for connecting anglers and fishing guides, with nearly 40,000 fishing trips available in more than 2,000 destinations worldwide.
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