Using Mackerel as Bait

By Alex Clayton · Updated 23 October 2026

Mackerel bait is an oily, tough-skinned fish bait sold whole or filleted by fishmongers, supermarkets and tackle shops. Cut into a strip, chunk, fillet or flapper, it catches most UK sea species, and in freshwater it is a standard pike deadbait.

The cut matters more than the fish. A strip that is too big flies off on the cast or never fits the mouth you are fishing for. This page covers why mackerel works, which cut suits which species, how to cut a strip and a flapper, how to fish it at sea and for pike, the rules to check, and how to keep it fresh.

Why Mackerel Works as Bait (and When It Doesn’t)

Most fish baits make you choose between scent and staying on the hook. Mackerel gives you both:

Oil. It leaks out steadily as an attractant. Pike anglers rate this most in coloured water.
Flash. The silver belly skin on a strip adds visual pull alongside the scent.
Toughness. The skin holds a hook through repeated casts. Sea angling writer Steve Walker calls it the toughest oily fish bait.

Herring is the obvious rival. It carries more scent but is softer and needs tying on, and Walker finds it outfishes mackerel for whiting. For a bait that survives a hard cast, the closest match is squid, the other sea bait that stays on through a big cast.

Mackerel lets you down when the piece is too big for a small-mouthed fish, or when defrosted flesh is too soft for a long cast. Herring wins on scent; mackerel wins on staying on the hook.

Mackerel Cuts Compared: Strip, Lask, Fillet, Flapper and Whole

The classic beginner mistake is hacking a lump off a whole mackerel. Size the bait to the mouth you are fishing for, and one fish covers everything from dabs to conger.

Cut	Rough size	Suits	Typical method
Thin strip	1 to 2cm	Mini species	Tipping, small hooks
Small strip	3 to 6cm	Pouting, whiting, school bass, dogfish, flatfish; pollack, coalfish and wrasse on the float	Bottom or float
Float strip	About 5 to 6in (13 to 15cm), finger-shaped	Pollack, coalfish, bass	Float, freeline or slow retrieve
Lask (long strip)	9 to 12cm	Rays, bull huss, bigger bass, winter cod	Bottom, with bait elastic
Chunk or fillet	Large chunk or a whole fillet	Winter cod from piers, conger, bass	Bottom
Flapper	Whole fish, backbone out, opened up	Conger, tope, skate and other big fish	Bottom
Whole joey	Small whole mackerel of a few ounces, sides slashed	Larger predators	Bottom
Half or tail section	Head end or tail end	Pike (freshwater)	Leger, float, wobbled, drifted or trolled

Small strips usually stay on without elastic. Anything from a lask upwards needs wrapping.

Region matters too. Planet Sea Fishing puts North East mackerel at around 1.25lb to 2lb (0.6kg to 0.9kg), too big to fish whole for shore species, so they go on as fillets or flappers. South West Scotland joeys weigh a few ounces and go on whole, hooked through the mouth and out of the top of the head.

Best for: on a mixed shore mark, start with 3 to 6cm strips.

How to Cut Mackerel Strips and a Flapper

You need a sharp knife and a board. Steve Walker’s rule is to cut every piece from a fillet, never hack at a whole fish.

Strips

Fillet the fish by cutting down one side of the backbone from head to tail.
Lay the fillet skin side down on the board.
Cut strips along the length of the fillet, sized from the table above.
Keep the belly strips for tipping worm baits and float fishing. They are the toughest, most silvery part of the fish.
Taper one end of a float strip slightly so it flutters in the tide.

Flapper

Cut down both sides of the backbone from just behind the head to the tail, keeping both fillets attached at the head.
Snip the backbone through near the head and again near the tail, then lift it out.
Open the fish out so the two fillets hang, or “flap”, either side of the head.
Hook through the head so the fillets trail behind.

Cut away from the hand holding the fish, and practise the flapper on a fishmonger mackerel at home before your first session.

Fishing Mackerel in the Sea: Tipping, Float Strips and Big Baits

Winter cod off a pier usually means worm, yet Steve Walker reckons a fresh mackerel chunk or fillet can outfish other baits there, and few anglers try it. That is one of three jobs mackerel does at sea.

Tipping. A small frozen belly strip on a lugworm or ragworm bait for whiting and dabs holds the worm on and adds scent and movement. It pairs with most other sea fishing baits.
Float, freeline or slow retrieve. Strips of 5 to 6in take pollack, coalfish and bass in mid-water.
Big bottom baits. Lasks, chunks and fillets for rays, huss, cod and conger. Flappers and whole joeys for conger, tope and skate.

Wrap anything large or soft from the freezer in bait elastic. The leftovers work too: head, guts, tail and scraped backbone go in as a scent trail, or get mashed with bread as groundbait for mullet, garfish, pollack and wrasse.

To catch your own, see our guide to mackerel feathers for catching your own bait.

The verdict: start with tipping. It shows you what mackerel adds to baits you already use.

Mackerel for Pike: Sections, Rigs and Safe Handling

A deadbait that splits on the third cast costs you time. A rig that lets a pike swallow the bait deep costs the fish. Mackerel solves the first problem, and the Pike Anglers’ Club (PAC) rig guidance solves the second.

The PAC names mackerel, herring, sardine and sprats as good pike baits. Angling Direct’s pike deadbait guide adds that mackerel goes on whole or as halves, with tail sections the most popular, though heads work just as well. Its oil helps in coloured water, and the rounded shape and tough skin survive repeated casts.

You can leger it, float leger it, float fish it, wobble it, drift it or troll it. Deadbaiting and trolling for pike on Windermere, I’ve found that a bait which holds together on the cast and on the troll matters as much as the choice of fish.

The PAC’s rig basics, from its older Fact Sheet 1:

A wire trace is essential, no lighter than 20lb.
Hook trace at least 18in (45cm), with a 24in (60cm) wire up-trace.
Barbless, semi-barbless or crushed-barb hooks. Their example uses two size 10, 8 or 6 semi-barbed trebles.

The PAC’s current leaflet adds: fish a free-running leger with a weak link, strike all runs immediately, never freeline, and skip fixed leads and bolt rigs. Have an unhooking mat and long-nosed forceps or pliers ready before you cast.

For bait choice beyond mackerel, see our full guide to pike deadbaits.

Best for: coloured water and long casts. Skip if: the fishery bans deadbaits.

Rules to Check Before You Use Mackerel

England’s national rod fishing byelaws cover live bait and say nothing about sea deadbaits, so the rules that matter are usually local. These points are England only; Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland differ.

National byelaws. Live bait may only be used in the water it came from, some local byelaws ban it, and moving fish between waters needs written Environment Agency agreement. Deadbaits are not mentioned (GOV.UK national byelaws).
Lake District lakes. The North West byelaw bans dead or live freshwater fish, salmonids and eels as bait on named lakes, including Windermere. Sea fish are not named, and extra bait restrictions apply on Windermere from 15 March to 15 June. Read the North West region byelaws and check with the fishery or landowner.
Fisheries and clubs. Many set their own deadbait rules, so check the day ticket or club book.

Pike fishing in England also needs an Environment Agency rod licence. If in doubt, ask the fishery first.

Keeping Mackerel Bait Fresh: Cool Box, Freezing and Defrosting

Mackerel left in a warm car turns to mush that will not stay on a hook. Carry it in a cool box and chill it as soon as you get home.

To freeze it, Steve Walker’s method is:

Fillet the fish.
Rinse in fresh water and pat dry on paper towel.
Freeze flat on a metal tray.
Wrap tightly in cling film, squeezing out the air.
Bag and seal, pressing out any remaining air.

Fillets freeze faster than whole fish, and fast freezing keeps the bait in better condition. Defrosted mackerel is softer than fresh, so use bait elastic. One angling site suggests salting it before freezing to toughen it, which is worth a try rather than a proven method.

Fresh is best for distance casting and big bottom baits. Frozen strips are fine for tipping.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use supermarket mackerel for bait?

Yes. The Pike Anglers' Club says sea fish from supermarkets and fishmongers can be used for pike, and shop mackerel works at sea too. Fresh fish is firmer than defrosted, so buy it close to your session.

What is a mackerel flapper?

A mackerel flapper is a whole mackerel with the backbone removed, so the two fillets hang either side of the head. It is a big bait for conger, tope and skate. See How to Cut Mackerel Strips and a Flapper above.

Is mackerel a good pike bait?

Yes. Tail sections and halves are popular because mackerel is oily, casts well and stays on. Fish it on a wire trace of at least 20lb with a free-running safe rig, strike runs straight away, and check that the fishery allows deadbaits.

Can I use mackerel as bait on Windermere?

The North West byelaw bans freshwater fish, salmonids and eels as bait on Windermere and other named lakes, but does not name sea fish. Read the byelaw on GOV.UK and check with the fishery or landowner before you fish it.