Ultralight
Also called UL, ultra-light
What is an ultralight rod?
The lightest rod power, built for tiny lures and small fish, typically rated for 2 to 6 pound line and lures under a quarter ounce.
Ultralight at a glance
- Line rating
- 2 to 6 lb
- Lure rating
- Under 1/4 oz
- Reel size
- 1000 or 2000
- Wrong for
- Heavy cover
What is an ultralight rod for?
An ultralight rod bends under almost nothing. That is the whole point. It lets you cast a 1/32 ounce jig or a small inline spinner far enough to matter, and it makes a nine-inch bluegill or a stocked rainbow feel like a real fight instead of a twitch on the way in.
What do you pair with an ultralight rod?
A small reel, a 1000 or 2000 size, and light line. Four pound mono is the classic and it works because the rod's softness is doing the shock absorbing that heavier line would otherwise have to do.
Ultralight setups are the most fun-per-dollar rig in freshwater and the reason a lot of people who quit fishing come back to it.
Where does ultralight stop working?
The limit is obvious the first time a bass eats your crappie jig. There is no backbone to move a fish away from a dock or through weed, so you play it out in open water or you lose it.
That is a constraint on where you fish rather than a defect. Open ponds, creeks and stocked trout water are ultralight country; grass mats and laydowns are not.
Ultralight is for panfish, trout and creek fishing in open water. If there is heavy cover anywhere near you, take something else.
What this means when you’re choosing
- A line rating of 2 to 6 lb printed on the blank, which is the honest definition of ultralight regardless of what the marketing says.
- A reel small enough to balance it. A 2500 on an ultralight rod undoes the lightness you bought it for.
- Length around 6 to 7 feet for casting distance with tiny lures, which weigh too little to carry themselves.
The common mistake
Treating it as a beginner rod
Ultralight sounds gentle and forgiving, so it gets bought as a first rod, and then a two-pound bass takes the bait next to a dock and there is nothing to be done about it. It is a specialist for small fish in open water. A medium power rod is the forgiving all-rounder; ultralight is the second rod you buy once you know you love panfish.
Common questions
What can you catch on an ultralight rod?
Panfish, crappie, stocked trout, small creek bass and perch. It will land larger fish in open water, but it has no backbone to turn one away from a dock, weed bed or laydown.
What line goes on an ultralight rod?
Two to six pound, most often four pound monofilament. The rod's soft bend does the shock absorbing, so light line works far better here than it would on a stiffer blank.
Where this comes up
The guides that use ultralight and show it on real gear.
Last reviewed . Ultralight is one of 222 terms in the fishing glossary.