Florida Crabbing
Here, you can find all of Crabbing Hub’s resources on crabbing in Florida. I go over topics such as Florida crabbing regulations, places to go crabbing, facts and information about the crabs here, and how to responsibly catch them.
Types of Crabs in Florida
Atlantic Blue Crab
| Minimum Size | None |
| Season | Year-Round with seasonal closures. |
| Habitat | Saltwater marshes, bays. |
| Need License? | Yes, with exceptions. |
Florida Stone Crab
| Minimum Claw Size | 2 and 7/8th inches. |
| Season | Open Oct 15 to May 1. |
| Habitat | Sandy, rocky, and muddy-bottomed bays and estuaries. |
| Need License? | Yes. |
Plan Your Florida Crabbing Trip
With thousands of miles of shoreline in the state, Florida has an overwhelming number of spots where you can set a crab trap. Different traps work for different spots and crab types. Plus, your number of options explode if you have a boat or hire a crabbing charter. With all these options, let me help you narrow it down.
Florida is unique with stone crabs. Before deciding anything, pick whether or not you want to go after Stone crabs, blue crabs, or both. You can easily do both by crabbing at or near a spot with brackish/salty muddy or rocky-bottom waterways. Crabbing near a bridge or jetty would do fine. You can read more about stone crab here. For this article, I’m going to focus on blue crabs.
The deciding factor in how you go crabbing is deciding on a spot. Once you pick a type of spot where you want to crab, you can then choose your trap get crabbing! In Florida, you can find crabs in any of the following habitats:
- Brackish water
- Saltwater
- Bays & Estuaries
- Salt marsh
- Coast
- Swamp
With these habitats, you can get an idea of where to find crabs in Florida. I’ve narrowed the types of spots down to piers, shorelines, and waterways as beginner-friendly crabbing spots.
Shorelines
Crabbing is so simple that you can walk up to to the shore of any crab-filled waterways and potentially catch a crab! You can use hand lines & dip nets, along the shore, or bring a kayak to pull collapsible traps a bit off shore. Read my guide: How To Go Crabbing From Shore.
Piers
For those without a boat, but still a little serious about crabbing, piers are the spot for you. You can set traps along the length of where you’re crabbing for the most chances of catching a crab. Read my guide: A Beginner’s Guide to Crabbing off a Pier (Step-by-step).
Waterways
If you have a boat, you can crab in Florida’s waterways while following local restrictions. You can set crab pots in saltwater marshes, wetlands, coastal bays, estuaries, or anywhere else you can find tidal saltwater or brackish water.
