If you’re looking to upgrade your fishing experience, look no further than a – quality – fish finder. These will make it possible to see where fish are located and identify their species, so you can successfully go after your target fish.
The best will also include customizable waypoints and GPS. Some will even provide you with your own fishing journal.
Without further ado, here is the Top 5 best fish finder for saltwater list, below:
Table of Contents
- 1 1. Humminbird Helix 5 Fish Finder
- 2 Customer Feedback
- 3 2. Garmin Striker 4 Transducer Fish Finder
- 4 Customer Feedback
- 5 3) Deeper Castable Fish Finder
- 6 Customer Feedback
- 7 4. Lowrance Hook2 Fish Finder
- 8 Customer Feedback
- 9 5. Humminbird Helix 7 Fish Finder
- 10 Customer Feedback
- 11 Editor’s Choice
- 12 Fish Finder F.A.Q
1. Humminbird Helix 5 Fish Finder
- CHIRP Digital Sonar
- 5-inch Color Display
- GPS
- Switchfire Max or Clear
- Wide, Narrow, or Dual Beam Modes
- Chirp technology
- The radar has great detail
- The GPS is considered quite handy
- It has exceptional accuracy
- The waypoints are very useful
- The plastic clips tend to break
- The waypoints cap at 500
The Humminbird Helix 5 Fish Finder uses Humminbird’s classic, state-of-the-art CHIRP (AKA Compressed High-Intensity Radar Pulse) Sonar.
Through the use of wide, narrow, or dual-beams, it provides remarkably detailed feedback. This shows up on a 5-inch color display radar.
Use Switchfire to see more or less accessory info, such as how many fish or thermoclines you’d like to see; just toggle between the modes ‘max’ and ‘clear.’
The Humminbird Helix 5 Fish Finder includes a transducer and the necessary mounting hardware and power cable, as well as a gimbal mounting bracket, for an installation that couldn’t be simpler!
Customer Feedback
Customers agree that this is a top-notch fish-finder; it’s accurate and it provides impressive detail. The GPS is also handy!
The biggest downside? A few customers have had the plastic clips break, and you may wish to replace them with metal ones and spare yourself this inconvenience on the water.
Customers also love that the Humminbird HELIX 5 Fish Finder records waypoints and wish it would record more than 500.
2. Garmin Striker 4 Transducer Fish Finder
- Near-Photographic Sonar Up to 10-Feet Deep
- User-Friendly Control Panel
- 3.5-Inch, 5-Inch, or 7-Inch Display Options
- 12 Volt Rechargeable Battery
- GPS
- Waypoint Navigator
- Clear display
- Super useful waypoint navigator
- Truly amazing detail
- Multiple display sizes to choose from
- Compact and lightweight
- Great GPS
- The screen is very hard to see in the sunlight or with tinted eyewear
- The screen is not waterproof
The Garmin Striker 4 Transducer Fish Finder provides near-photographic sonar up to 10-feet deep, showing you any nearby fish, obstacles, and other underwater objects in incomparable detail.
It will also allow you to navigate by saving and locating waypoints, with internal GPS.
The Garmin Striker 4 Transducer Fish Finder is available in three display options, 3.5-inch, 5-inch, and 7-inch, to suit your preferences (and budget).
Controlled with a user-friendly panel (featuring just a few important buttons) and powered by a 12-volt rechargeable battery (included).
Customer Feedback
Customers praise the Garmin Striker 4 Transducer Fish Finder not just for its truly amazing detail (claiming to be able to follow a worm on a hook), but also for its GPS and waypoint navigator. The ability to save and locate waypoints can really streamline your task!
They like that it is compact, lightweight, and out of the way. The most common complaints were that 1) the screen is hard to see in the sunlight or with tinted eyewear and 2) the screen does not appear to be water-proof.
3) Deeper Castable Fish Finder
- Bathymetric Map Creator
- Lakebook Fishing Journal
- Fish Deeper App
- Castable Up to 330-feet
- Scans Water from 6-inches to 330-feet Deep
- Target Separation of 0.4-inches
- Incredible sonar
- Exceptional detail
- Includes indispensable Lakebook Journal
- Uniquely castable
- Incomparable range (distance and depth)
- There have been issues with ice fishing mode
- It requires cell service to work
The Deeper Castable Fish Finder isn’t just your average, mounted fish finder. It can be cast out to 330-feet, and scan water from 6-inches deep to 330-feet deep. This means that you won’t miss a fin or whisker.
Your scans, points of interest, notes, and photos are all accessible via what is called ‘Lakebook,’ a personal fishing journal.
With the Fish Deeper App, you can keep track of where and when to fish, locate targets, measure the depths, and more!
The Deeper Castable Fish Finder runs on a rechargeable battery, which charges to full in just over an hour (75 min).
Customer Feedback
Customers say that the Deeper Castable Fish Finder is nice and lightweight. It provides incomparable detail of not only fish, but logs, weeds, and other underwater objects. The bathymetric map is another winner.
Some wish the Deeper Castable Fish Finder could work without cell service, as they find this limiting. Additionally, ice fishers have not found it to be particularly reliable. Otherwise, this fish finder has been dubbed one of the best of its kind and can be a real game-changer!
4. Lowrance Hook2 Fish Finder
- Mountable Transducer
- Installed Maps of US Inland Lakes
- Sonar
- GPS Plotter
- Upgradeable
- Super Clear screen
- Mapping
- User-friendly
- Great sonar
- Easy to set-up
- Includes maps of US inland lakes (4,000 total)
- Handy GPS plotter
- The screen can be hard to see in the sunlight
- It may (rarely) have trouble scanning in very deep water
The Lowrance Hook2 Fish Finder functions through one simple mounted transducer. This can be placed in a few different places, for your convenience, including the transom, through a scupper hole, inside the hull, or on the trolling motor.
The Lowrance Hook2 Fish Finder is installed with 4,000 US inland lake maps (with 1-foot contours), to help you navigate the water.
It is easy to operate, with a basic and intuitive user panel (said to look similar to a phone screen).
To navigate and create custom waypoints, the Lowrance Hook2 Fish Finder includes a top-notch GPS plotter.
Customer Feedback
Customers say that the Lowrance Hook2 Fish Finder is both user-friendly and quick and easy to install. They have only good things to say about the side and down sonar, and get a lot of use out of the GPS plotter.
The downside? It may (rarely) have trouble scanning in very deep water.
5. Humminbird Helix 7 Fish Finder
- 7-Inch Color Display
- CHIRP Dual Beam Sonar
- GPS
- Built-In Anima Cartography
- Low Q CHIRP Transducer
- Side-view provides impressive detail
- Easy Setup
- Lots of features to offer
- It’s upgradeable (with Lakemaster)
- Wish it came with an SD card
- May not pick up deep readings while moving at high speeds (over 14 mph)
With a 800H X 400V resolution TFT display, the Humminbird Helix 7 Fish Finder covers up to 125 feet below your boat. This is thanks to state-of-the-art CHIRP dual beam sonar.
There are two primary modes for your view: wide, so you can see further, or narrow, so you can see in more detail.
Switchfire will inform you of the water depth, the temperature, the turbulence, and other important factors.
The Humminbird Helix 7 Fish Finder also allows chart plotting, and has built-in anima cartography, and it is compatible (and upgradeable) with Lakemaster. This is much more than your average fish finder!
Customer Feedback
Customers praise the side-view sonar highly, for its level of detail. They also appreciate the many features it has to offer (such as Switchfire). The worldwide maps and scrollable lake lists are also said to make finding the perfect fishing spot easier than ever.
As far as complaints, some wish that the Humminbird Helix 7 Fish Finder came with an SD card. One customer also stated that the fish finder has trouble picking up in-depth readings at high speeds (over 14mph).
Overall, customers agree that the Humminbird Helix 7 Fish Finder is as good as high-end fish finders that are much costlier!
Editor’s Choice
Customers agree, the Deeper Castable Fish Finder pretty much has it all… making it our winner! With an incomparable range of 6-inches to 330-feet deep, it blows the rest of these awesome fish finders right out of the water.
- THE ONLY CASTABLE FISH FINDER CHIRP: The three beam frequencies, crisp clarity and extreme accuracy makes it ideal for quickly locating target species holding spots, pinpointing predator fish and fishing in extreme depths.
What’s more, this isn’t at the expense of the picture quality, as the fish, weeds, and other underwater objects are rendered in remarkable, near-photographic detail.
All of this, with the handy Fish Deeper app and invaluable Lakebook journal.
It also runs on rechargeable batteries, and recharges in just over 1 hour (75 min). What do you think?
To help you narrow the options down and find your ideal fishfinder, here are some things you may wish to consider!
As you can see, these 5 fish finders are truly exceptional among their kind, as they are all user-friendly, have great range, and don’t stint on detail.
Fish Finder F.A.Q
Q. What’s the Range?
You’ll find not only fish, but areas of interest and other vital fishing information as well. The Deeper Castable Fish Finder might be our favorite, but which caught your eye?
The range of a fish finder can vary widely, from just 10-feet to well over 100-feet (in distance and depth). Sometimes, those with a greater range cost more, as you can probably imagine.
But there are plenty of more cost-effective options with impressive range as well. You’ll have to take a look!
Q. Is it Castable?
Did you know that some fish finders are castable? This can increase their range considerably, allowing the sonar to reach farther and deeper than ever. While it’s not strictly necessary, it’s certainly something to keep an eye out for!
Q. What Accessory Features Does it Have (If Any)
Some fish finders have accessory features that you wouldn’t even know to want, but which can be immensely useful. For instance, some can tell you the depth, temperature, and even the turbulence of the water.
Others come with nifty add-ons such as a personal fishing journal. Why limit yourself?
Q. Does it Include Maps and Waypoints?
When it comes to picking out a fish finder, maps and waypoints are pretty much a must-have! There are many cost-effective options that possess these, so there’s no reason to go without. If a fish finder does not offer maps or waypoints, you may want to look elsewhere.
Maps and waypoints will allow you to mark the best fishing spots, and any relevant information about the fish, area, etc. It’s a very practical sort of fishing journal. And it generally requires a GPS plotter.
Q. Does it Have GPS?
In today’s era of technology, GPS is everywhere… even in your fish finder. This unlocks even more features (like waypoints).
Q. Screen Size and Pixel Number
Most fish finder screens vary between 4-8-inches, so you can search according to this if you prefer. This will often also affect the number of pixels the screen has to offer. Do you require just your basic radar, or near-photographic images that are crystal clear?