A castable fish finder is quite revolutionary in the depth finder world as it gives bank fishermen the ability to see whether their bank fishing spot is holding fish and has some depth changes or structures worth exploring. This is something that was never possible until castable fish finders came on the market.
If you spend most of your time bank fishing on rivers or lakes and/or shore fishing in the sea then you’ve probably had a look at a few castable fish finders. As a bank fisherman, you are probably wondering if they’re worth bringing along on your fishing trips and I’m here to help you make that decision.
Image | Product | Details | |
---|---|---|---|
Best Fish Finder for Shore FishingGarmin Striker Castable Sonar with GPS |
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Best Portable Fish FinderDeeper Smart Sonar – Deeper CHIRP |
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Best For 3D Sonar & 3D MappingLowrance FishHunter 3D |
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Best For Boats or KayaksVexilar SP200 T-Box Smartphone Fish Finder |
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Best On A BudgetReelSonar iBobber Fish Finder |
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Contents
ToggleOur Best Fish Finders For Bank Fishing
Join me as we look at some of the best castable fish finders on the market so you can find the fish finder for bank fishing that suits you best.
Garmin Striker Castable Sonar with GPS
Best Fish Finder for Shore Fishing
Specs
- Power: Internal rechargeable battery
- Frequency: 260/455 kHz
- Sounder: Dual Beam, flasher
- Flasher: Yes
- GPS: Yes
- Charts: Self-mapping
- How deep?: 150 ft
- Range: 200 ft
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Bluetooth: No
- Battery Life: 10 + hours
Pros
- Simple and easy to use
- Accurate depth readings and fish images too
- Uses traditional dual beam sonar with 2 frequencies to choose from
- Comes with a flasher for vertical fishing
- Excellent for ice fishing as well as kayaks, small boats, and fishing from a float tube
- Great connection range of 200 ft
- Awesome battery life of 10+ hours so you can catch fish all day long
- Solid scanning depth of 150 ft
- Self-mapping and GPS included
- Download river, shore, and lake maps from the app
Cons
- No CHIRP sonar
The Garmin Striker Castable Sonar with GPS is one of the best portable fish finders on the market and this is thanks to its reliability and versatility. Most portable fish finders do one thing like being portable or castable, but this new fish finder from Garmin does it all.
Bank fishermen can use the Garmin for shore fishing, river fishing, kayak fishing, and even as an ice fishing fish finder as it has an ice fishing flasher mode. It would even be awesome on a small boat fishing trip too!
This castable fish finder connects to your android or ios device, phone or tablet, via its own WiFi hotspot. Once connected, you simply download the free striker cast app, attach the small floating transducer to your fishing line on a separate stiff rod, cast it out into the water, and you’ll start seeing accurate sonar images or your phone/tablet using the dual-beam sonar.
The castable sonar unit has a 200 ft connection range so you can see what’s sitting way off the shore and with a maximum scanning depth of 150 feet, nothing is going to get missed.
This great fish finder also comes with a cool feature in the form of self-mapping and GPS. While using the sonar device, it will build you a depth map down to 1ft of accuracy. You will also have access to the Garmin quickdraw community and be able to download bathymetric maps of your bank fishing spots.
To top it all off, these portable units have an excellent battery life of 10+ hours so you can stay out fishing for longer and catch more fish than ever. Perfect if you’re going out on your fishing float tube.
Deeper Smart Sonar – Deeper CHIRP
Best Portable Fish Finder
Specs
- Power: Internal rechargeable battery
- Frequency: 90 & 290 kHz
- Sounder: Dual Beam & CHIRP Sonar, flasher
- Flasher: Yes
- Global Positioning: Yes
- Charts: Selfmaps
- How deep?: 330 ft
- Range: 330ft
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Bluetooth: No
- Battery Life: 6 hours
Pros
- The only castable fish finder with CHIRP sonar
- Huge castable range of 330 ft for bank fishing
- Excellent max scanning depth of 330 ft
- Provides super accurate sonar images
- Includes a flasher for ice and vertical fishing
- Charges to 80% in just 45 mins
- Comes with GPS and will build river, sea, and lake maps for you
- Super-versatile and great for kayaks, small boats, a float tube
- Records and review sonar data
- Comes with a fish alarm, and identify bottom types
- Simple and easy to use
Cons
- It’s hard to open the charging port
- Battery lasts 6 hours
- Can have connection issues
The Deeper Smart Sonar Deeper CHIRP fish finder could be the best portable fish finder around as on paper, it really can do it all. Whether you want to use it for shore fishing, from a small boat, or ice fishing, it can technically do the job and a lot more. Because of its portability, this is also a great kayak fish finder.
What makes this castable deeper fish finder so appealing is that it comes with Chirp sonar and it’s the one castable fish finder in the world that does. CHIRP uses multiple sonar frequencies simultaneously to give you the most accurate readings possible of the entire water column, helping you see and hopefully catch more fish.
Not only does it use CHIRP but it also uses 3 scanning beams, more than most fish finders, which gives you amazing detail of the bottom structure and any fish holding by it.
This sonar unit also comes with a flasher for ice fishing, GPS for marking spots, and will build contour maps of the areas you’re bank fishing from. You can even record sonar data to review at a later date.
With a castable range of 330 ft and a maximum scanning depth of 330 ft, you can really see what is lurking under the surface while bank or shore fishing.
Its battery life isn’t so great at 6 hours as you’ll have to recharge during a day of fishing. Luckily it recharges first but opening the charging port can be a bit tricky.
Overall this portable fish finder is great for shore fishing but it does have some glitches. Some people love it but some have problems with the connection.
Lowrance FishHunter 3D
Best For 3D Sonar & 3D Mapping
Specs
- Power: Internal battery
- Frequency: 381kHz, 475kHz, 675kHz
- Sounder: Dual Beam
- Flasher: Yes
- Global Positioning: Yes
- Charts: Self-mapping
- How deep?: 160ft
- Range: 200ft
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Bluetooth: No
- Battery Life: n/a
Pros
- Comes with an LED light for visibility and night fishing
- Works for trolling, ice fishing, and for shore fishing
- Three scanning frequencies for accurate readings
- View the sonar readings in 2D or 3D
- GPS & self-mapping builds you custom maps
- Build 3D maps of fishing spots
- Shows you where to cast in relation to the unit
- Flasher is perfect for ice fishing and vertical fishing
- Good connection range and max depth
Cons
- GPS data isn’t always accurate
- Connection drops out a lot
- A bit expensive
- No battery info
- More expensive than others
The Lowrance FishHunter 3D castable fish finder is another great option for bank fishing as well as fishing from a small boat, kayak, and more.
Like all of the other fish finders featured, portable fish finder connects to your phone/tablet via its own WiFi hot spot to the Fish Hunter App. It has a solid connection range of up to 200 ft so you can trow these castable fish finders way out into the water when shore fishing. The connection can drop out now and then though.
Once in the water, these castable fish finders use three different sonar frequencies to give you super-accurate 2D and 3D sonar images. It also comes with a flasher mode so it’s a great ice fishing fish finder, plus the device tells you where to cast in relation to the transducer, helping you land your bait where the fish are.
Other great features included with his portable fish finder are GPS and self-mapping. The app will build your maps of places you fish, let you mark waypoints, and lots more.
These portable fish finders do come with their issues though. Many fishermen experience the connection dropping out, the GPS being inaccurate, the is no info on how long the battery lasts, and it’s more expensive than others.
Vexilar SP200 T-Box Smartphone Fish Finder
Best For Boats or Kayaks
Specs
- Power: 12-volt battery
- Frequency: 83/200 kHz
- Sounder: Dual Beam
- Flasher: No
- GPS: Yes with Navionics
- Charts: Works with Navionics
- How deep?: 240ft
- Range: 300ft
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Bluetooth: No
- Battery Life: NA
Pros
- Accurate and clear sounder images
- Works with Navionics for charts and sounder readings on one screen
- Goes quite deep and has a solid wifi range
- Lets you know the water temperature
- Comes with fish, low battery, and shallow water alarms
- Strong, stable wifi connection
- Easy to use and install
- Fish icons or traditional sounder view
- Shows fishes size and how deep they are
Cons
- Limited castable range
The Vexilar SP200 T-Box Smartphone Fish Finder is a portable fish finder for kayaks and boats, but it could be used as a castable fish finder by attaching it to a float. I’ve included it because it is extremely reliable, accurate, and castable if you want it to be.
The main issue with this unit is that it needs to be connected to a power source and has a 25 ft cable, so despite being able to connect to your phone from 300ft away, its castable range is limited.
But, if you are pulling this unit behind a kayak or jon boats then you are in business. It creates a stable connection with your phone/tablet that never drops, it merges with Navionics so get GPS, charts, and a fish finder all on one screen.
The sonar data on these is super accurate, it works at speeds under 10 knots, and it gives accurate readings down to 240 feet. You can use it with a traditional view or with fish symbols and it has fish, shallow water, and low battery alarms too.
Overall this is one of the most comprehensive and affordable portable fish finders around and the only negative is the castable range.
ReelSonar iBobber Fish Finder
Best On A Budget
Specs
- Power: Internal battery
- Frequency: Na
- Sounder: Single beam
- Flasher: No
- GPS: Yes
- Charts: Self-mapping
- How deep?: 135ft
- Range: 100ft
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Bluetooth: Yes
- Battery Life: 10 hours plus
Pros
- Good castable range of 100 ft
- Super affordable for the quality
- Maintains a solid connection
- Gives accurate readings down to 135 ft
- Shows fish by size and with depth markers
- Use GPS and trip log features to save fishing data
- Self-maps the water bed for you
- Great battery life of over 10 hours
- Includes shallow after and fish alarms
- Gives you weather reports while you’re fishing
- Works as a bobber and a fish finder
- Has an LED beacon for night angling
Cons
- Connecting to the unit isn’t always easy
If you’re shopping on a budget then the ReelSonar iBobber Castable fish finders might be just what you’re looking for. While these fish finders are very affordable at under $100, they do enough for anyone wanting to fish from the beach or a lake/river bank.
The fish finders work just like the others, by creating a WiFI hotspot that connects to the iBobber app on your phone/tablet. It maintains a solid connection and has a castable range of up to 100 ft, which is pretty good.
The sonar isn’t very high-tech as it runs just a single beam and frequency but still scans accurately down to 135 ft. You’ll be able to see fish, fish hold structure, depth changes, and even bottom types. The fish will be displayed with depth marks and it separates them into two sizes – bigger or smaller than 15 inches. The fish are even tagged with depth markers so you can fish with pinpoint depth accuracy.
You can use this unit as a bobber, it has an LED light for night use, it self-maps the water bed for you, and the GPS lets you mark spots. The app also comes with a trip log feature, provides you with weather reports, and has alarms for fish and shallow water.
Overall, these fish finders are pretty amazing for their price tag and the only thing to be wary of is that it can be hard to connect to the device, but it usually does connect in the end.
Things To Consider When Buying A Castable Fish Finder
Connection Quality & Range
Connection quality & range are two of the most important parts of a castable fish finder. Since the unit connects to your phone, if the connection breaks, the fish finder is useless. If the connection range isn’t very good, then you’ll be limited as to how far from the bank you can look for fishy areas.
Make sure the unit you get has good connection stats and that you can cast it as far as you need to.
Battery
If the battery dies while you’re fishing, the fish finder is also rendered useless and you will have to stop fishing to recharge it. Make sure the unit your go for has a battery that lasts at least 6 hours or more – 10 hours is best.
Sonar, GPS & Mapping
Sonar, GPS & Mapping are the three main features you want your unit to be able to do, and all the fish finders featured above have them. If you can see good sonar images, use GPS to mark spots, and the unit builds maps for you, you have all the data you need to start catching more fish than ever.
FAQs
Can you use a fish finder on the bank or on shore?
Yes, you can use a fish finder on the bank or on shore as these fish finders use a wireless connection that pairs with your phone. This means you can cast out the fish finder unit from the bank or shore and then slowly wind it in. As you wind the unit in, you’ll start seeing accurate sonar images including depth, bottom structure, fish, fish size, and fish depth.
Which Fish Finder Should I Get?
Thanks for reading my article, I hope you enjoyed it and have found the right bank fishing fish finder for you. If you haven’t, here at the ones I’d go for and for different reasons.
The Garmin Striker Castable Sonar with GPS is the unit I would buy. It’s one of the best garmin fish finders and the most reliable unit featured with some of the best features at the same time. You can rest assured knowing it will connect, the battery will last all day, the sonar is accurate, it builds maps, has GPS, and it has a flasher for ice fishing.
The Deeper CHIRP unit would be my second choice as it does all the same things the Garmin Unit does plus more, but it’s not quite as reliable. By having CHIRP it will provide the best sonar images of all the units and it also reads deeper than all the others with a max of 330 ft. But, the connection can drop and you’re going to have to pause to charge it if you’re fishing all day.
For those of you on a tight budget, the iBobber is the one for you. As it is one of the best fish finders on the market today. Yes its connection range and max depth readings are almost half of the others but it does the important things – showing you fishing, building your maps, and more