Each season - spring, summer, fall and winter - has a variety of fish you catch. Once you’ve mastered fishing, there are even five legendary fish for you to hunt down and capture. You can breed fish in fish ponds on your farm, which will not only provide you with more fish, but a variety of useful items. Fishing also plays an important part in completing the Community Center bundles, as the Fish Tank bundle is all about collecting the various fish that live across the valley; from the lakes deep within the mines to the forest river. On this page: Casting Casting begins the moment you decide to use your fishing rod and decides how far you throw your fishing line out across the water. The length of your cast is determined by the small bar that appears above your hand when you initiate this action. Within this bar you’ll find a line moving back and forth, from red to green. Ideally you want to cast when the bar is as green as possible. This will give you a longer casting distance, with the possibility of achieving a ‘Max’ cast. You’ll know when a cast is ‘Max,’ because the word will appear on the screen. Try to have a long cast distance as possible, because the length of your cast does have a slight influence over the fish you cast and it’s quality. You’ll also want to keep an eye out for a pool of bubbles in the water. Landing your cast in a pool of bubbles will encourage the fish to bite quicker and increase your chances of catching a rarer type of fish. Once you’ve cast your fishing line, all you have to do is sit back and wait for an exclamation mark (!) to appear above your avatar’s head. When you see that !, it’s time to reel your fish in. If you do this successfully, ‘Hit’ will appear on the screen. Catching With your fish on the line, the fishing mini-game will truly begin. The interface for this mini-game is divided into two important sections - the progress bar on the right and the fish bar on the left. The progress bar marks how close you are to catching the fish; green means you’re nearly there, while red means you’re about to lose your prey. This bar can increase and decrease throughout the mini-game, so make sure you keep an eye on it. The fish bar contains the fish you’re trying to catch, which will move up and down by the bar at a speed determined by how difficult it is to catch. This bar also contains a green rectangle, called the ‘Fishing Bar,’ that you control. The ‘Fishing Bar’ is controlled by pressing, holding and releasing the ‘Use Tool’ button. Pressing will make the ‘Fishing Bar’ raise, holding will keep it in position and releasing will make the bar fall. To catch the fish you need to keep it within the ‘Fishing Bar’, until the progress bar, on your right, is full. If you manage to catch a fish without having it leave the ‘Fishing Bar,’ then you’ll achieve a ‘Perfect Catch!’ This will increase both the experience you receive from catching the fish and the quality of the fish itself. The trick to catching fish in Stardew Valley is to learn the pattern of their movements. Some fish will move very fast, bouncing up and down the bar, while others move more slowly, before making a sudden movement. The more you fish, the more accustomed you’ll come to this rhythm and the easier fishing will become. Sometimes a treasure chest may appear during this mini-game. If you want this treasure you need to make sure it’s within the boundaries of the ‘Fishing Bar,’ until a small, separate progress bar is filled. Doing this will unlock the treasure chest, but only if you catch the fish. These chests can contain artifacts for the museum to copper ore, so it’s always a good idea to try and collect them.
Training Rod Bamboo Rod Fiberglass Rod - can equip bait - requires Fishing Level 2 Iridium Rod - can equip bait and tackle - requires Fishing Level 6
Even though it’s the easiest to use, don’t waste your time using the Training Rod, because it can only commonly found fish. Instead, use the Bamboo Rod that you receive from Willy after receiving his letter on the 2nd of Spring, until you unlock the Fiberglass Rod or Iridium Rod. Both of these rods allow you to attach bait, which makes it easier to attach fish when you’re casting. The Iridium Rod, however, is far superior, because you can equip it with tackle. There are seven different types of tackle that you can attach to the Iridium Rod and each one provides a different bonus. This tackle and the bonuses they provide are:
Barbed Hook - causes the ‘Fishing Bar’ to cling to the fish you’re trying to catch Cork Bobber - slightly increases the size of the ‘Fishing Bar’ Dressed Spinner - encourages fish to bite on your line when casting Lead Bobber - prevents ‘Fishing Bar’ from bouncing when dropped Spinner - slightly encourages fish to bite on your line when casting Trap Bobber - slows down the decrease rate of the catch progress bar Treasure Hunter - increases chance of finding treasure chests
Each tackle lasts for 20 uses and, once it’s broken, you can either craft or buy a new one from Willy’s Fish Shop on the beach. Tackle can greatly improve your fishing, from making it slightly easier to helping you improve the quality of your catch. The Dressed Spinner, for example, will help you increase your profits, by helping you catch more fish in a day. Tackle is especially essential when hunting down the Legendary Fish, because they can be very hard to reel in. The Trap Bobber is a great choice, because it helps sustain your progress bar. There are ten Fishing Levels in total and each one will provide you with a new bonus - be it a new crafting recipe or unlocking a new item. The size of the green rectangle in the fishing mini-game increases alongside your level. At Fishing Level five, you’ll be asked to choose between two professions - Fisher or Trapper. Fisher will provide you with additional bonuses when catching fish with a rod, while Trapper grants you crab pot related bonuses. When you reach Fishing Level 10, you’ll be able to unlock a second bonus for your chosen profession. Below you’ll find the various unlocks for each fishing level, including the profession bonuses: Fishing Level 1
Casting distance increased by one tile
Fishing Level 2
Fiberglass Rod and Bait now purchasable from Willy’s Fish Shop Crafting recipe for Bait unlocked
Fishing Level 3
Crab Pots now purchasable from Willy’s Fish Shop Crafting recipe for Crab Pot unlocked Recipe for Dish o’ The Sea unlocked
Fishing Level 4
Casting distance increased by one tile Crafting recipe for Recycling Machine unlocked
Fishing Level 5 Choose between these two professions:
Fisher - fish will now sell for 25% more Trapper - resources required to craft crab pots reduced (Becomes 25 wood and 2 copper bars)
Fishing Level 6
Iridium Rod, Lead Bobber, Spinner and Trap Bobbler now purchasable from Willy’s Fish Shop Crafting recipe for Spinner unlocked Crafting recipe for Trap Bobber unlocked
Fishing Level 7
Cork Bobber and Treasure Hunter lure now purchasable from Willy’s Fish Shop Crafting recipe for Cork Bobber unlocked Crafting recipe for Treasure Hunter lure unlocked
Fishing Level 8
Casting distance increased by one tile Barbed Hook and Dressed Spinner now purchasable from Willy’s Fish Shop Crafting recipe for Barbed Hook unlocked Crafting recipe for Dressed Spinner unlocked Crafting recipe for Worm Bin unlocked
Fishing Level 9
Magnet now purchasable from Willy’s Fish Shop Crafting recipe for Magnet unlocked Recipe for Seafoam Pudding
Fishing Level 10 At Fishing Level Ten you can pick an additional bonus depending on which profession you picked: Fisher:
Angler - fish will now sell for 50% more Pirate - chance of uncovering treasure while fishing doubled
Trapper
Luremaster - crab pots no longer require bait Mariner - rubbish items will no longer appear in crab pots
One of the main goals in Stardew Valley is to complete the Community Center bundles or, if you’re corporate minded, you can buy a JojaMart Membership. Fishing is a great way to earn money in Stardew Valley, especially if you decide to use crab pots and ponds. Throughout the year you’ll also be able to take in a variety of festivals, including the Egg Festival, Stardew Valley Fair and the Night Market. Each fish can be found in a specific location and will test your reaction time in the fishing minigame. All, except the Mutant Carp, require you to have a specific fishing level, or higher, to catch it. You’ll know when you have a legendary fish on the line, because the little fish in the mini-game will be wearing a hat. There is only one of each legendary fish per save file in Stardew Valley, so decide carefully what you want to do with yours - do you want to sell it for a nice lump of cash or are you keeping it for bragging rights? The Submarine Ride runs between 5pm to 11pm and will take you on a deep sea fishing tour for 1,000g. The journey to the sea floor takes 30 in-game minutes there and back - an hour in total - so, if you’re planning on using the submarine, it’s a good idea to dedicate a whole night of the Night Market to pure fishing; especially since there are three three that can only be caught on the submarine. Below you’ll find the fish that are exclusive to the Night Market, along with the other fish that and other items that you might catch: Fish exclusive to the Night Market Submarine:
Blobfish Midnight Squid Spook Fish
Other fish you can catch:
Octopus Sea Cucumber Super Cucumber
Items you can catch:
Pearl Seaweed
If you want to learn even more about fishing, then check out our guides on fish ponds, crab pots and treasure chests in Stardew Valley!
