Flounder Season in Texas: An Angler’s Guide for 2026 Reading Time: 5 minutes

Are you looking for a fun adventure in the Gulf of America? One that provides excitement, a challenge, and a tasty reward? Whether you’re just starting out, looking to work on your skills, or have fished all around the world, the Flounder season in Texas invites all. 

A man in a blue shirt and shorts stands on a dock holding a large Flounder, with a box of Crabs nearby and fishing gear in the background.

Texas has an abundant supply of Flounder, with two native species. Southern and Gulf Flounder are open to harvest almost year-round, making the Texas Flounder season a long affair. Unsurprisingly, the opportunities to catch them are pretty much endless! But it’s not just as straightforward as showing up and casting a line… 

Follow along as I take you through the ins and outs of the Texas Flounder season!

Texas Flounder Season Regulations

As with any angling adventure, you’ll need to get your head around the specific local regulations to make sure you’re fishing within the law. Rules are put in place to ensure fisheries thrive and that fish can repopulate well. 

A man in a cap and sunglasses holding a big Flounder in front of him with open waters and blue skies behind

First things first, whether you’re a resident or visitor, you need an up-to-date Texas fishing license with a saltwater endorsement to go fishin’ in the Lone Star State. This is true whether you’re fishing solo or heading out with a charter. 

As I mentioned above, the Flounder season is open most of the year in Texas… That means there’s a short season where this species is off-limits. That takes place from November 1 to December. During open season, each angler can keep five Flounder per day, with a minimum length of 15 inches. 

Note that these regulations are subject to change every year, so make sure to double-check.

Peak Texas Flounder Fishing Season

With 10 and a half months of open fishing, there’s plenty of opportunity to get in on the action. But when is the best time to go Flounder fishing? Well, the peak Flounder season typically runs from summer through fall. 

Two people kneel side by side at night, each holding two large Flatfish by the gills, posing on a dock with fishing gear in the background.

While Flounder can drop a little deeper to avoid the heat of summer, they can’t resist the influx of bait that brings them to the shallows. This is the best time of year for Flounder gigging in Texas, too. Come and make the most of those long summer nights! 

The fish remain active inshore come fall, too. The weather is a bit cooler to their liking, and they actively inhabit inshore waterways. The inshore fall migration has them especially stocking up on food in preparation for their offshore winter spawning, making them more likely to take your bait. 

Texas Flounder fishing can be productive throughout the day, but lower light hours and calm conditions are key. Outgoing tides with a nice current flow that pushes bait towards sitting Flounder are also essential. After all, these are bottom-dwelling ambush predators.

How to Catch Flounder in Texas

While you won’t need any fancy gear to go Flounder fishing, these fish can be tricky to catch. They’re notorious for shaking hooks, especially just before you pull them out. But when you have the right gear and techniques, you’ll soon be reeling in your limit!

A man leaning over the back of his purpose-built flats fishing boat while back on dry land following a successful nighttime Flounder gigging trip in Galveston.

A light or medium-light setup is ideal. Cast in front of them and free-line your bait, slowly bounce or jerk lures along the bottom, or drift bait in the current. As Flounder are bottom dwellers, they often quietly and secretly wait to ambush prey. Try keeping your bait close to the bottom and in front of them, no matter the method you opt for. 

As for the best bait to use during Texas Flounder season, try finger mullet, shrimp, mud minnows, and peeler crabs. You can also opt for imitation lures and jigs such as Berkley’s Gulp Shrimp. Don’t rush the hookset when you feel a bite! Let the fish take it for a second, then set. 

Of course, if you’re looking for something different to conventional fishing, try gigging. You won’t need any type of bait – just grab a gigging spear. Don’t forget a bright light to spot the fish on the bottoms. (It also helps to have good eyesight to spot their camouflaged outlines!)

Texas Flounder Fishing Hotspots

With hundreds of miles of coastline, sprawling bay systems, and productive estuaries, Texas is a natural Flounder habitat. These Flatfish thrive around marsh drains, sandy, muddy, and rocky bottoms, oyster bars, reefs, grass flats, channels, tidal and gulf passes, along with structure-filled areas where they can lie and wait for passing bait fish. Texas has plenty of them, which we can take a closer look at now…

Galveston Bay

Sunset over water with a Texas flag up front, a ship on the horizon, and that Texas coast fishing vibe.

Arugably Texas’s most famous saltwater honey hole, Galveston and its surrounding bays boast miles of marsh shorelines, oyster reefs, bayous, and channels. There are Flounder present throughout the year, with the nearby passes and jetties becoming full of fish come fall. Outside this period, hit up marsh drains, creek mouths, and channel edges where moving tides funnel bait fish that Flounder love to target. 

Matagorda Bay

A man on a boat holding up a big flat Flounder with mottled brown coloring, water behind him and a cloudy sky overhead.
Photo courtesy of Stacks N Stringers

Another popular inshore spot, Matagorda Bay combines grassy shorelines, oyster reefs, sandy flats, deep channels, and healthy estuaries that create ideal ambush habitat for Flounder. You can find success slowly bouncing soft plastics or jigs, or drifting live bait along drop-offs and current breaks.

Rockport

You’re looking at an aerial view of a coastal town with homes, roads, a marina, and docks stretching into blue-green water. There aren’t any visible FISH or other SPECIES in this scene.

The waters surrounding Rockport, including Aransas Bay, feature grass flats, marsh shorelines, back lakes, and numerous tidal cuts where Flounder regularly feed. Nearby Aransas Pass is also highly productive during the fall migration as fish move between the bays and the Gulf.

Laguna Madre & South Islands

A young boy in a green shirt holds up a Flounder by a fishing line and holds a fishing rod in his other hand aboard a boat on a clear day
Photo courtesy of AW Fishing

South Texas offers another unique fishery. The Laguna Madre‘s shallow grass flats, sandy potholes, and channels support Flounder year-round. Around South Padre Island and Brazos Santiago Pass, you can enjoy excellent opportunities during the fall migration. Clear and calm water conditions also make this region a favorite for nighttime Flounder gigging.

Texas Flounder Season FAQS

Gear Up for Texas Flounder Season!

Two people pose and smile behind a metal table displaying 10 Flounder at a fishing dock, with a sign and grid fencing in the background.
Photo courtesy of Bay Finatic Flounder Gigging Service

There’s plenty of time to get out there before the November closure date, so why not make the most of it? Gather your gear, pick a hotspot (or two, or more!), double check the regulations, and enjoy some much-needed time on the water. Whether you’re wading in the shallows, boat fishing in the deeper zones, or gigging in the wee hours of the night, it’s an adventure awaiting you. Follow my tips above and let us know how you get on!

What’s your PB Flounder? How did you catch it? Any tips for someone heading out for the first time? Drop us a line in the comments below! 

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