Statewide Limits & Regulations

Name: eRegulations
Price range: $

Statewide Creel and Length Limits
The following are the creel and size limits that apply statewide. Several waters have exceptions to these limits. Refer to the pages listed in red at the bottom of this page to see exceptions to the statewide regulations. If you are fishing a location that does not have exceptions listed in this guide, then the statewide limits apply.
Species	Creel Limit	Minimum Length Limit
Black Bass (includes Largemouth, Smallmouth, Spotted, Alabama, Coosa and all hybrids)	5 No more than 5 Black Bass per day in any combination may be taken.	none
Crappie (all species combined)	15	10 inches
Region 1 Crappie Exception: unless otherwise noted for specific waters.	30	none
Rock Bass or Redeye and Shadow Bass	20	none
Striped Bass or Hybrid Striped Bass (any combination)	2	15 inches
White Bass	15	none
Muskellunge	1	36 inches
Sauger or Sauger/Walleye hybrids	10	15 inches
Walleye	5	16 inches
Trout (all trout species combined)	7	none
Lake Trout	Only 2 trout may be Lake Trout.	none
Redear Sunfish (Shellcracker)	20	none
Yellow Bass, Bluegill, Warmouth, Bream, Bullheads, Pickerel, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, and nongame species	no limit	none
Skipjack Herring	100	none
Alligator Gar: No harvest allowed. Must be returned to water immediately.
Catfish: Only one (1) catfish over 34 inches may be harvested per day. No harvest limit on catfish less than 34 inches.
Paddlefish: Paddlefish may be harvested from April 24 through May 31. Daily creel limit is two (2) fish per day with no size limit. Culling is prohibited. For exceptions on Center Hill, Cherokee, and Watts Bar reservoirs, see Reservoir Regulations.
Shovelnose Sturgeon: No harvest allowed. Must be returned to water immediately.

Exceptions to the statewide limits and other regulations:

Reservoirs

How to Measuring a Fish's Length

Lay the fish on a flat ruler, close the mouth, and squeeze the lobes of the tail fin to produce the maximum length. The mouth of the fish may not be manipulated or extended.

Illustration showing how to correctly measure a fish's length.

Statewide Creel and Length Limits

TWRA’s goal is to manage each species of fish with statewide creel and length limits where possible. However, many waters, because of their unique characteristics, require individual creel and length limits. These regulations improve fishing for all anglers.

Minimum Length Limits restrict the harvest of fish below a specified minimum length. For example, a 15-inch minimum length limit allows the angler to keep fish 15 inches or greater. Fish less than 15 inches cannot be harvested.

Protected Length Ranges (PLRs) allow anglers to harvest fish above and below a specified length range. For example, a 14–18-inch PLR protects fish in the 14–18-inch length group. Anglers may harvest fish that measure less than 14 inches and they may harvest fish that measure over 18 inches. For a protected length range to be effective, anglers must harvest fish below the protected range.

Possession Limits: The total possession limit is twice the daily creel limit. You may not have more than the daily creel limit with you while afield. It is unlawful to have, while afield, any fish which has been altered so that its species and/or total body length cannot be determined.

Pole or Rod Limit: Unless otherwise noted in this guide or by proclamation, there is no limit on the number of poles an angler may fish at one (1) time.

Statewide Hook Restriction

Unless otherwise restricted in this guide, anglers are restricted to a maximum of 3 hooks per rod, pole or hand-held line. Single, double or treble hooks each count as one (1) hook. The statewide hook restriction does not apply when using a sabiki rig (also known as a piscatore rig) to take shad or herring. A sabiki rig is a set of small lures attached to a single line, typically used to catch baitfish.

Example of a legal multi-arm array with 3 fishing hooks.

Banned In Tennessee

It is unlawful to possess or transport live specimens of the following animals:

Silver Carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix)
Bighead Carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis)
Black Carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus)
Blueback Herring (Alosa aestivalis)
Marbled Crayfish (Marmorkrebs) (Procambarus virginalis)
New Zealand Mud Snail (Potamopyrgus antipodarum)
Round Goby (Neogobius melanostomus)
Rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus)
Ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernua)
Snakeheads (all members of the Family Channidae)
Swamp Eels (all members of the Family Synbranchidae)
Zebra Mussels (Dreissena polymorpha)

Commercial Fishing in Tennessee

Commercial fishing is legal in Tennessee, with a long history of adapting their business operations for the benefit of Tennesseans. When managed properly, commercial fishing provides consumers with a local, healthy, and sustainable food source that helps support local economies. The commercial fishing industry provides fresh or preserved fish and fish products for grocery stores, farmers markets, and local shops throughout Tennessee. TWRA closely monitors harvest rates to make sure fish stocks stay at healthy levels. The commercial fishing industry contributes more than $24.5 million dollars annually to Tennessee’s economy. To fight Invasive Carp, TWRA implemented the Tennessee Carp Harvest Incentive Program (TCHIP) in September 2018 with the assistance of the commercial fishing industry. Invasive Carp removal through commercial fishing is an integral part of the effort to prevent Silver Carp expansion and control Invasive Carp in the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers. As of April 30, 2025, the TCHIP program has removed 37,416,076 pounds of Invasive Carp from the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers. Invasive Carp removal through commercial fishing is vital in protecting Tennessee’s sport fisheries.