UTERThe best time to fish the Florida Keys is May, when the tarpon migration peaks at the bridges and permit stack up on the wrecks to spawn. For bonefish and permit on the flats, the best stretch is August through October, and November through March is sailfish season on the reef. The Keys fish every month, because the water rarely gets cold enough to push everything out. What changes is which fish you chase and where.
This guide covers the Florida Keys from Key Largo to Key West: the oceanside flats and patch reefs inside the reef line, the reef itself, the Gulf-side banks and basins of Florida Bay and the backcountry, and the bridges and channels that join the two sides. The months come from the Keys page of Fish Scouter's season calendar.
Florida Keys fishing calendar at a glance
| Month | Headline | Top targets |
|---|---|---|
| January | Bonefish on warm afternoons; bridges and patch reefs are the sure thing | Sailfish, kingfish, cobia, yellowtail, bonefish |
| February | Sailfish weather outside; flats between fronts | Sailfish, yellowtail, kingfish, bonefish, permit |
| March | The flats come alive; first migrant tarpon | Bonefish, permit, tarpon, sailfish, blackfin |
| April | Tarpon month begins at the bridges | Tarpon, permit, bonefish, yellowtail, mutton snapper |
| May | Peak tarpon; permit spawn on the wrecks | Tarpon, permit, mahi, mutton snapper, yellowtail |
| June | Late tarpon; snapper move to the reef | Tarpon, mahi, yellowtail, mangrove snapper, bonefish |
| July | Calmest water; mangrove snapper spawn | Mangrove snapper, yellowtail, mahi, bonefish |
| August | Best flats month for bones and permit | Bonefish, permit, mangrove snapper, yellowtail |
| September | Permit and bonefish peak; baby tarpon in the backcountry | Permit, bonefish, snapper, juvenile tarpon |
| October | Biggest flats tides; snook in the backcountry; kings return | Bonefish, permit, snook, kingfish, blackfin |
| November | Fall bonefish; sailfish season begins | Bonefish, sailfish, kingfish, cobia, wahoo |
| December | Winter pattern: water temperature decides | Sailfish, kingfish, cobia, yellowtail, bonefish |
Winter: December to February
December
Watch the water temperature. Over about 70°F, the oceanside flats still hold bonefish. Under it, fish the patch reefs, the bridge channels and the wrecks. Kingfish and cobia are back on the reef edge and the Gulf-side wrecks, and cobia also sit in the chum slicks behind the shrimp boats on the Gulf side. Resident tarpon roll in Key West harbor and under the bridge lights on warm nights.
January
The Keys are a winter mixing ground for kingfish and cobia that spend the summer far up both coasts, so January is a wreck-and-reef month. Sailfish work the edge of the reef from Key Largo to Key West. Fly kites with live ballyhoo or pilchards, and fish the day or two after a front. Yellowtail come up in a chum slick on the reef edge. Big winter barracuda sit on the oceanside flats and eat a tube lure ripped fast. Bonefish are on the flats only on warm afternoons, which is also when the pre-spawn schools gather.
After a cold front: bonefish and permit slide off the flats to the deeper channels and the oceanside edges. The bridges and patch reefs keep fishing. Two warm days later, the flats refill from the ocean side.
February
Sailfish weather on the reef. Between fronts, the flats fish well on the afternoon tide. After one, go to the patches and the bridge channels. Spanish mackerel and cero are thick on the Gulf-side shoals and channel markers in a chum slick, and amberjack gather to spawn on the humps and deep wrecks off Islamorada and Marathon. The first migrating tarpon can show at the bridges late in the month if the water warms.
Spring: March to May
March
The flats come alive. Permit and bonefish tail on the oceanside flats as the water passes about 74°F. Tarpon push through the channels and lie up in the backcountry basins on calm days. Blackfin tuna are on the Islamorada and Marathon humps, so chum with live pilchards. The kings and cobia start leaving north, and sailfish hold on through the month.
April
Tarpon month begins. Fish Bahia Honda, the Seven Mile Bridge, Channel 2, Channel 5 and every channel bridge on the outgoing tide at night, and look for daisy chains on the oceanside flats at dawn. Permit build into spawning groups on the wrecks and natural reefs around the full moon. Western Dry Rocks off Key West is the famous one. Mutton snapper peak on the reef, and yellowtail feed on the reef at night.
May
The whole Keys tarpon migration is on. Bonefish & Tarpon Trust's acoustic tagging found that fish from both Florida coasts mix here before they split up the Atlantic and the Gulf. Fish the bridge channels on the tide change and the oceanside flats at first light. Permit peak on the wrecks. Drift a live crab back on the current. Mutton snapper spawn on the reef edge around the full moon. Offshore, big mahi bulls ride the weed lines, so run and gun for frigatebirds. Sharks shadow the tarpon at the bridges, so land fish fast and keep them in the water.
Summer: June to August
June
Late tarpon at the bridges, and the best palolo worm hatch fishing on the bayside when the worms run. Mangrove snapper start pulling off the backcountry and the bridges to the reef. Bonefish feed early on the oceanside before the heat. It's peak schoolie mahi season offshore, and permit are still spawning on the wrecks around the moon.
July
The calmest water of the year. Between the July and August full moons, mangrove snapper leave the backcountry and the bridges for the oceanside reef to spawn, in big schools on single reefs near Key West. Fish at night on a moving tide. Cubera snapper spawn on the deep wrecks and reef edge around the same moons. Bonefish feed at first light. Migrating tarpon leave, while residents and juveniles stay.
August
The best bonefish and permit fishing of the year. Fish the early tides on the oceanside flats, then move to the reef for snapper. Goliath grouper spawn on the wrecks and the bridge channels around the August moon. Goliath harvest is tightly restricted, so check MyFWC and plan to release them in the water.
Fall: September to November
September
Permit and bonefish are both at their best on the flats, and big permit sit on the Gulf-side wrecks. Baby tarpon fill the backcountry basins and mangrove creeks, which makes for great light-tackle fishing on a calm morning. Snapper are still steady on the reef.
October
The biggest flats tides of the year, and the best fall bonefishing. The offshore bonefish spawning season starts around the full and new moons. Snook feed in the backcountry creeks and at the bridges, and the snook season and slot change during the year, so check MyFWC. Kings and Spanish return to the reef edge and the wrecks, and blackfin come back to the humps. Wahoo show on the dropoffs as the water cools.
November
Fall bonefish on the oceanside flats until the first hard front. Sailfish season starts on the reef edge. Kings and cobia arrive on the wrecks. Wahoo are on the dropoffs and humps around the full moon, so troll high-speed lures. Black grouper move up onto the reef, and Atlantic shallow-water grouper rules apply in parts of the winter, so check MyFWC.
Tides in the Keys
Keys tides are small, about 1 to 2.5 feet, but the current through the channels between the islands is strong. The oceanside and bayside tides are out of step, so one side is moving while the other is slack. That's why the bridges fish so well: there's almost always water moving somewhere.
- Bridges and channels: the tide change, and the outgoing at night for tarpon.
- Oceanside flats: the incoming, early in the day, for bonefish and permit.
- Reef and patches: a moving tide with a current to carry your chum slick.
- Winter flats: the afternoon tides, after the sun has warmed the water past 70°F.
Baits that work in the Keys
- Live crabs: permit on the wrecks and flats, and tarpon at the bridges.
- Live shrimp: bonefish on the flats, snapper on the patches.
- Pilchards and ballyhoo: sailfish under kites, kings, blackfin and mahi.
- Chum and small baits: yellowtail, cero and mangrove snapper on the reef.
- Mullet and pinfish: tarpon in the channels and snook in the backcountry.
- Tube lures: barracuda on the winter flats.
Rules
The Keys have some of the most layered rules in Florida: state water, federal water, protected reef zones, and spawning-season protections for permit inside FWC's Special Permit Zone, with a separate closure at Western Dry Rocks. Bonefish and tarpon are catch-and-release fisheries in Florida, apart from narrow tag exceptions. Read the current rules at MyFWC before you keep a fish, because seasons, slots and closures change.
Know the day, not just the month
A calendar tells you May is tarpon month. It doesn't tell you which night this week the bridge tide lines up, or whether the flats are warm enough after Tuesday's front. We built Fish Scouter for that, and we think it's the best app for planning a Keys trip. It combines this season calendar with the live water temperature from the nearest reporting sensor, the NOAA tide for the nearest station, the wind and the seven-day outlook. Then it ranks every species for the spot you're on, each hour, with the reasons in plain words. For the rest of the state, see the Florida fishing calendar the Florida tarpon season guide and our Boca Grande and Charlotte Harbor guide, or try Fish Scouter free.