Fishing forecast by species
Snook fishing forecast today
Snook are the fish most tied to water temperature on this coast, so the same day can be Prime in one town and Slow in another. This page scores each spot against what snook need and ranks them. It scores conditions only; it can't tell you where the fish are.
Best spots for snook right now
Scored 24 of 24 spots · Oct 21, 5:28 PM ET- Tampa Bay & Pinellas · water 80°F · down 5°F this week91Prime
Tide: 2.1 ft range · 2 in daylight
- Space Coast · water 79°F · down 4°F this week90Prime
Tide: 2.8 ft range · 2 in daylight
- Gold Coast · water 84°F · down 2°F this week90Prime
Tide: 2.2 ft range · 2 in daylight
- Nature Coast · water 74°F · down 5°F this week89Prime
Barometer: -0.04 inHg over the day
- Tampa Bay & Pinellas · water 80°F · down 5°F this week89Prime
- Treasure Coast · water 81°F · down 4°F this week89Prime
Tide: 2.7 ft range · 2 in daylight
- Space Coast · water 79°F · down 3°F this week89Prime
Tide: 2.8 ft range · 2 in daylight
- Sarasota Coast · water 80°F · down 5°F this week87Prime
Wind: 9 mph NE, gusts 17
- Treasure Coast · water 81°F · down 5°F this week87Prime
- 10.JupiterGold Coast · water 84°F · down 2°F this week86Prime
- Tampa Bay & Pinellas · water 80°F · down 5°F this week86Prime
Barometer: -0.03 inHg over the day
- 12.Cocoa BeachSpace Coast · water 79°F · down 4°F this week86Prime
Tide: 2.8 ft range · 2 in daylight
- 13.SarasotaSarasota Coast · water 82°F · down 4°F this week86Prime
Barometer: -0.03 inHg over the day
- Sarasota Coast · water 80°F · down 5°F this week85Prime
Barometer: -0.03 inHg over the day
- 15.Key LargoThe Florida Keys · water 83°F · down 4°F this week84Prime
Wind: 11 mph N, gusts 22
Show the other 9 spots
- Fort Myers Beach84 Prime
- Naples84 Prime
- Sanibel Island83 Prime
- Homosassa83 Prime
- Placida · Gasparilla Sound83 Prime
- Manasota Key81 Prime
- Stump Pass · Englewood Beach81 Prime
- Marathon76 Good
- Islamorada73 Good
This ranks a spread of spots along the coast, not every town. Open any spot for its full seven-day outlook. Scores are conditions only: they can’t tell you where the fish are, and water temperature is a model reading, not a measurement at the dock.
What moves the snook score
Water temperature sets the ceiling
FWC says snook turn lethargic below about 65°F, and research puts the point where they stop feeding near 58°F. They are most active somewhere around 70 to 82°F. We apply that as a hard cap: calm water and a good tide can't make a cold snook bite.
Moving water at structure
Snook feed on current: passes, bridges, creek mouths and mangrove edges on a strong tide. Tide movement carries about a third of the score.
Wind and fronts
Hard wind and rough seas cap the score for every fish, and a front can drop the water several degrees in a day or two. The week-over-week water trend shows when that has happened.
Rules and seasons are separate from conditions and change by region and by order. Florida’s are on FWC’s snook page ; other states set their own. Our own write-up: Snook fishing the Englewood to Boca Grande coast.
Common questions
What water temperature is best for snook?
Roughly 70 to 82°F is where snook are most active. FWC says they go lethargic below about 65°F, which is sluggish rather than lethal: people catch them through the winter in the 60s. The lower lethal limit for adults is lower still, somewhere in the 40s to mid 50s depending on the study, and small fish are affected first.
Does this tell me if snook season is open?
No. It scores fishing conditions, not regulations. Snook seasons, the slot limit and the permit requirement differ by FWC region and can change by executive order, so check FWC's snook page before you keep one.
Why is a spot ranked high if I can't catch snook there?
The ranking is conditions only. A high score means the water temperature, tide and wind are good for snook there today. It does not mean snook live in that exact spot or that it's legal to keep one.
Other fish
Salty Forecast is a free hyperlocal weather app for the coast. These are planning aids built from forecast data, tide predictions and a water-temperature model, not guarantees: fish don’t read forecasts.