Fishing Hook Sizes Explained: UK Coarse & Carp Size Chart

By Hooked Tackle · Last updated 19 August 2026
We are a tackle shop in Newmarket serving carp, coarse and predator anglers. These are the sizes we hand across the counter every week.

Quick Answer

Fishing hook sizes explained in one line: the smaller the number, the bigger the hook. Sizes run from 24 at the tiny end up to size 1, then flip to 1/0 and upwards for the largest patterns. UK coarse and carp fishing lives almost entirely between size 20 and size 8. Match the hook to the bait you are using, not to the fish you are hoping to catch.

How Fishing Hook Sizes Work

Quick answer: hook sizing is not standardised, so a size 16 from one manufacturer is not the same as a size 16 from another.

There is no governing body setting the dimensions of a size 16. Each manufacturer works to its own pattern, which is why two packets marked with the same number can sit noticeably differently in your palm. Treat every size chart, including this one, as a starting point. The hook in front of you is the only one that counts.

The numbering itself is straightforward once you accept that it runs backwards. As the number goes down, the hook gets bigger. A size 24 is barely larger than a grain of rice; a size 8 is a serious bit of wire. Past size 1 the scale reverses into 1/0, 2/0 and so on, though coarse and carp anglers almost never need to go there.

Coarse fishing hook sizes conventionally run in even numbers: 20, 18, 16, 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4. Odd sizes do exist, but you will rarely see them on a UK shelf. If you learn the even ladder you have learned the whole system.

One term is worth knowing. The gape is the distance between the point and the shank, and it is what actually decides how much bait will fit and how well the hook takes hold in a fish's mouth.

Wire gauge matters as much as size and gets far less attention. A fine-wire size 16 and a forged size 16 are identical in size and nowhere near identical in strength. Use fine wire for delicate baits and shy-biting fish, and heavy wire when carp or snags are involved.

Fishing Hook Size Chart by Bait

Quick answer: pick the hook that carries your bait neatly without hiding the point.

This fishing hook size chart covers the baits you are most likely to have in your box, from squatts on a canal to a 15mm boilie on a specimen water.

Bait	Hook size	Typical use
Squatt or pinkie	22–20	Canals, winter silverfish
Single maggot	20–18	Roach, rudd, general silvers
Double maggot	18–16	Skimmers, better roach, F1s
Single caster	18–16	Quality silvers, clear water
Bread punch	20–16	Canal and river roach
Sweetcorn, single grain	16–14	Carp, tench, bream
4mm pellet	18–16	F1s and skimmers
6mm banded pellet	16–14	Commercial carp and F1s
8mm banded pellet	14–12	Commercial carp
Wafter or mini boilie	16–12	Method feeder work
Worm section	16–12	Perch, bream, tench
Bread flake	12–8	Chub, roach, carp
Luncheon meat cube	12–8	Barbel, chub, carp
Whole lobworm	10–8	Perch, tench, specimen fish
10–12mm boilie on a hair	8–6	Carp
15mm+ boilie on a hair	6–4	Specimen carp

Remember that these are our patterns and yours may differ slightly, because sizing varies between makers. The governing principle does not vary though: the bait should sit on the hook without swamping the point. If the bait buries the point, go up a size. If the hook overwhelms the bait and the whole thing looks unnatural, go down one.

The right hook size for maggots is the clearest example of that principle at work. One maggot on a size 20 looks right; three maggots on a size 20 looks like a knot of grubs with a hook lost somewhere inside it. Count your maggots and move up the ladder accordingly. Stock up on coarse fishing hooks in a couple of sizes either side of your usual and you will always have the right one on the box.

What Size Hook for Carp?

Quick answer: sizes 16 to 12 for commercial carp on pellet or corn, and sizes 8 to 4 for specimen carp on boilies.

The question of what size hook for carp has two completely different answers depending on which sort of carp fishing you are doing. A commercial fishery carp of 2–8lb taken on a 6mm banded pellet wants a small hook in strong wire. A 20lb specimen taken on a 15mm boilie wants a wide-gape pattern in heavier wire, tied to a hair.

Going too big on a pressured commercial costs you bites. Those fish see hundreds of hookbaits a season and a clumsy presentation gets ignored, particularly in clear water in the back end of summer. Going too small on a big-carp water costs you fish instead, because a fine-wire hook will open out under sustained pressure from a heavy fish.

Our carp hooks cover both ends of that range, and if you are still settling on a presentation our guide to the best carp rigs walks through which hook suits which rig. Pair them with the right boilies and the size choice tends to make itself.

Hook Sizes by Species

Quick answer: silverfish want 20 to 16, commercial carp and F1s want 18 to 12, and specimen carp and barbel want 12 to 4.

Species	Hook size	Common bait
Roach and rudd	20–16	Maggot, caster, bread punch
Crucian carp	18–14	Maggot, corn, paste
Skimmers and bream	16–12	Double maggot, worm, corn
F1s	18–14	4mm pellet, maggot, wafter
Tench	14–10	Corn, worm, pellet
Perch	12–8	Worm, lobworm section
Chub	14–8	Bread flake, meat, pellet
Barbel	12–6	Meat, pellet, boilie
Commercial carp	16–12	Banded pellet, corn, wafter
Specimen carp	8–4	Boilie on a hair

These are starting points rather than rules, and they shift with conditions. Water clarity, angling pressure and time of year all move the needle. Fish that are shy and heavily pressured, drop a size and go finer. Fish that are snaggy or weedy, go up a size and go heavier.

Sizing also varies between manufacturers, so cross-check against the hooks you actually own before committing. If you are targeting pike, zander or perch on lures rather than bait, the sizing system is different again and you want trebles and pre-tied traces instead.

Barbless, Micro-Barbed or Barbed?

Quick answer: most UK commercial fisheries require barbless or micro-barbed hooks, so check the fishery rules before you buy.

A barbless hook has a clean point with nothing to catch. It slides out of a fish's mouth in seconds, which is why the great majority of commercial fisheries insist on them. It is also the kindest option for the fish and the fastest to deal with when you have a net full and the clock running.

A micro-barbed hook carries a barb small enough to be pinched down or pulled out easily. Plenty of fisheries that ban standard barbed hooks accept micro-barbed, because the bait stays put without the unhooking damage. Check the specific rules rather than assuming.

Standard barbed hooks still have their place on rivers, club waters and syndicate lakes where the rules allow them, and they hold soft baits like bread flake and meat far better. The barbless vs barbed hooks decision is usually made for you by whichever water you have turned up at, so read the board at the gate. Whichever you choose, you also need a valid Environment Agency rod licence if you are 13 or over.

There is one genuine trade-off worth stating plainly. Barbless hooks come out cleanly, but they also fall out cleanly, so you have to keep a bend in the rod throughout the fight. Drop the tension for a second and the fish is gone.

Spade End or Eyed?

Quick answer: spade end for small hooks and match fishing, eyed for carp rigs and anything needing a hair.

Spade end hooks finish in a flattened paddle rather than an eye. They are traditionally made in finer wire and smaller sizes, which is why match anglers fishing 20s and 18s for roach and skimmers reach for them. Most anglers buy them ready-tied to nylon rather than tying the whipping knot themselves.

Eyed hooks are far easier to tie by hand and are the standard choice for carp fishing. Anything involving a hair rig, a knotless knot or a quick-change swivel needs an eye to work with. They also tend to come in heavier wire and larger sizes.

If you are starting out, buy ready-tied spade end hooks to nylon. They remove an entire layer of hassle at the waterside, and you can learn to tie your own once you have caught a few. Add a tub of hookbaits and wafters and a bag of pellets and you have a session's worth of options.

Five Mistakes Beginners Make With Hook Sizes

1. Choosing the hook to match the fish rather than the bait. A carp will take a single maggot on a size 18 quite happily. Size for what is going on the hook, not for what you hope picks it up.
2. Fishing a hook so big the bait looks wrong, then blaming the swim. An oversized hook makes a small bait sit at an odd angle and hang unnaturally. The fish are not always missing; sometimes they are simply refusing.
3. Using fine wire hooks for carp and straightening them out. Fine wire is for shy silverfish, not for a double-figure common in weed. Check the wire gauge as carefully as you check the number.
4. Assuming a size 16 is a size 16 across every brand. Sizing is not standardised, so switching brands mid-season can quietly change your presentation. Compare new hooks against your old ones before you fish them.
5. Not checking the point after every fish or snag. Drag the point across your thumbnail; if it does not bite, change it. A blunted point costs more fish than the wrong size ever will.

FAQs

What size hook is best for beginners?
A size 16 is the best single starting size for UK coarse fishing. It handles double maggot, a grain of sweetcorn, a 6mm banded pellet and a small worm section, which covers most of what a beginner will fish. Buy a few packets in 18, 16 and 14 and you are set for almost any commercial fishery session, and our carp fishing for beginners guide covers the rest of the kit.

Are bigger hook numbers bigger hooks?
No, it works the other way round. The larger the number, the smaller the hook, so a size 20 is much smaller than a size 8. The scale only reverses above size 1, where 1/0, 2/0 and upwards get progressively larger.

What size hook for maggots?
Use a size 20 to 18 for a single maggot and a size 18 to 16 for double maggot. Drop to a 22 or 20 for squatts and pinkies on canals in winter. The correct hook size for maggots is dictated by how many you are putting on rather than by the species you are targeting.

What size hook for boilies?
Use a size 8 to 6 for a 10–12mm boilie and a size 6 to 4 for 15mm and above. Boilies are almost always fished on a hair rather than directly on the hook, so the hook needs enough gape to take hold cleanly without the bait in the way. Match the wire gauge to the size of carp in the lake.

Do I need barbless hooks in the UK?
It depends entirely on the fishery. There is no national rule requiring barbless hooks, but the majority of UK commercial fisheries do require barbless or micro-barbed, and many club waters follow suit. Always check the rules for the specific water before you fish.

What size hook for a method feeder?
A size 16 to 12 covers almost all method feeder fishing. Use a 16 or 14 with a 6mm banded pellet or wafter for commercial carp and F1s, and a 12 for larger baits or bigger fish. See our method feeder guide for the full setup.

Are hook sizes the same across all brands?
No. Hook sizing is not standardised, and there is no governing body defining the dimensions of a given size. A size 16 from one manufacturer can be visibly larger or smaller than a size 16 from another, so always compare a new pattern against hooks you already trust before fishing it.

Get the Right Hooks

That is fishing hook sizes explained: match the hook to the bait rather than the fish, check the fishery rules on barbs before you buy, and keep the point sharp. Get those three right and hook choice stops being something you worry about. Browse our coarse and match tackle range to stock the box.