2026 Special report on fishing

Fishing’s Reach Is Wide. But It’s Becoming an Occasional Outing, Not a Regular Pursuit

Fishing remains one of the most popular and accessible ways Americans get on the water — 57 million people ages 6 and up fished at least once in 2025, well above the 50.1 million recorded in 2019 — but the sport is growing shallower rather than more frequent. The share of anglers heading out weekly has fallen from about 8% a decade ago to under 6% in 2025, while those fishing just 1 to 3 times a year climbed from 22% to 32%; today, 68% of participants fish 11 times or fewer. Overall participation slipped roughly 2% year over year, with the sport shedding close to a million anglers under a 33% churn rate. Saltwater fishing is the standout exception: up 3% to a record 15.5 million anglers in 2025 — 1 million more than in 2020 and the highest total ever tracked — and, unlike the categories around it, growing on both fronts, with total outings rising 2% to 183 million even as freshwater held flat and fly fishing dipped. The through-line across every category is the same: fishing’s future depends less on drawing people to the water than on getting them back more often.

The 2026 Special Report on Fishing, a partnership between the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and the Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), is now available. The report breaks down freshwater, saltwater, and fly fishing by frequency, demographic, region, income, and age, profiles key audiences including youth, Hispanic, Black, and female anglers, examines fishing’s heavy crossover into camping, hiking, and walking, and highlights where the opportunities and the headwinds lie — from a younger, more diverse wave of newcomers to the casual and lapsed anglers the industry is struggling to keep. Check out the report for the key findings and what they mean for the industry.