Bait and lure guide - Red Dead Redemption 2

Fishing and hunting are key parts of the Red Dead experience, and if you want to complete all of the challenges available to you, then you’re going to need to know how the baits and lures in Red Dead Redemption 2 work. In this guide, we’ll explain how each lure works, as well as discuss which fish bait works best to ensure you understand everything that a hunter or fisherman needs to know.

Bait and lure guide - Red Dead Redemption 2

There are seven types of lures available in Red Dead Redemption 2 and Red Dead Online. Each lure has its own strengths, and you’ll want to make use of each one if you plan to do any amount of fishing. We’ve broken down each of the lures below, as well as included information about which types of fish they work best on.

You can change your bait and lure anytime when the Fishing Rod is equipped.

Lake Lure – useful for catching medium and large-sized lake fish.
River Lure – useful for catching all medium and large-sized river fish.
Swamp Lure – excels at catching all medium and large-sized swamp fish.
Special Lake Lure – increases your chance of catching medium and large-sized fish in lake areas including legendary fish.
Special River Lure – increases your chance of catching medium and large-sized fish in river areas including legendary fish.
Special Swamp Lure – increases your chance of catching all medium and large-sized fish in swamp areas including legendary fish.
Special Spinner – increases your chance to catch any type of fish in any area including legendary fish.

As you can see, there are special lures for each area that you’ll find fish in and making use of those lures in those particular areas will always increase your chance to catch the best fish in those areas. This means you’ll want to use items like the River Lure to increase your chance of catching things in river areas. This includes fish like the Steelhead Trout and other river-dwelling fish.

Of course, bait is just as important as lures, and knowing all the different types of bait in Red Dead Redemption 2 will help you succeed even more in your goals to become the best fisherman you can be—or at least one capable of completing all the challenges that await you in the campaign and Red Dead Online. We’ve outlined the types of bait below, as well as included a brief description of what they are useful for below. We’ve also added on the prices for each one, so that you know how much each piece of bait costs.

Live Crickets – excellent for attracting medium-sized fish like Smallmouth Bass. - $.50
Live Worms – excellent for attracting medium-sized fish like the Steelhead Trout. - $.50
Crayfish – excellent for attracting medium sized fish like the Largemouth Bass. - $.25
Cheese – best for catching smaller fish like the Bluegill and Rock Bass. - $1.90
Bread – excels at catching smaller fish like Perch and Redfin Pickerel. - $.40
Corn – best for catching smaller fish like the Bullhead Catfish and Chain Pickerel. - $.40

It’s important to try to combine the baits listed above up with the lures that work best for those particular types of fish. However, some fish like the Steelhead Trout will often enjoy things like worms, despite being a river fish. Because of this, you should always try to experiment with things if you’re having trouble catching a particular type of fish. You can also always check in on our Red Dead Redemption 2 fishing guides, which will pinpoint the locations of all the fish you’ll want to catch in the game.

You can catch large fish like Lake Sturgeon easier if you use the right bait and lure.

On top of fishing bait, Red Dead Redemption 2 also includes two types of animal bait, which we’ve outlined below.

Herbivore Bait – Attracts average herbivores in the vicinity. - $2.25
Predator Bait – attracts average predators in the vicinity. - $3.00

These two types of bait can be found at the Bait Shop in Lagras, or even crafted using ingredients you find around the world. They can both be useful for attracting animals to specific areas, though you’ll need to make sure you’re being careful and silent when using it as the animals might be scared away otherwise.

Make sure to pick up bait as soon as you can and start utilizing it to increase your chances of catching the fish you want to catch. Furthermore, you can check out the rest of our Red Dead Redemption 2 strategy guides for even more helpful information.