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5 Best Bass Lures – January 2026
New year, new gear.
It’s officially 2026 and we’re committed to bringing you even more bass fishing gear guides this year. We had a goal to step up the fishing content at the beginning of last year, and we certainly hit that goal, but this year, we’re going even harder. Whether you have a tricked out bass boat, a kayak, or you’re just fishing off the bank, I’m committed to bringing readers even more gear guides, more bait recommendations that come personally tested by me, and more rod and reel advice. We’ll talk line, storage options, electronics, terminal tackle… all of it.
When it comes to gear, I’ll always try and be cognizant of budgetary constraints and try to offer some good options across all price points… of course, some baits are just gonna be a bit pricey no matter who makes it (hard jerkbaits for example). But every single product I recommend (with an affiliate link to on Tackle Warehouse) will either be a product I own and personally use, or have one I have tried before and recommend. Every one, an expert-tested, certified fish catcher… guaranteed.
Every month, we’ll deliver a carefully thought-out top 5 “Bait of the Month” type of blog, but one thing to remember is that they are always gonna be relative to where you live. So for example, I’m iced up in Wisconsin right now… none of them going to work on my home lake. If you’re in South Texas or Florida, maybe the water is a little bit warmer and 3 of the 5 are ideal. These lists will generally be for the middle 60-ish percent of the country, and then if you’re in the far north or the far south, you’ll want to adjust… maybe go up a month or back a month, depending on where you live.
All that being said, let’s kick off 2026 with my top 5 cold water baits for the month of January:
Blade Bait
I absolutely love a blade bait in the cold-water winter months and I think it’s really a slept on lure. When the water is at its absolute coldest, just above icing over, I don’t think there is a better lure on the market than a blade bait for catch those lethargic, finnicky bass that are parking it down in the bottom of the lake for the winter months. And it’s super easy to fish… just drop it down there on a medium or medium heavy spinning rod (some guys will use a baitcaster), and give it a slight lift, just enough to feel it vibrate, and then drop it back down. You’ll want to target what’s left of weed edges, maybe some bluff banks, any deep stumps or ledges… they work really well through the ice too (for all my northern anglers).
Colors: Black Holo, Black & Gold
Colors: Ghost Bluegill, Black Silver, Blue Silver
Swimbait/Minnow
I’m gonna lump a few baits in one small “swimbait” category, but the truth is, you can tailor this approach to your local body of water. I love an underspin in cold water (I actually like an underspin in every season), but maybe you want to wind a swimbait on a jighead, or utilize your forward facing sonar and “shake a minnow.” Either way, you can probably use the same kind of approach with either of the three. And you can even go a step further and put a few on an A-rig too. That plays in the south quite well.
As far as the underspin goes, I generally like to utilize it in the same way that you might traditionally use a lipless crankbait in the cold water. A slow wind near the bottom, or even a “yo-yo” approach where you wind and kill, wind and kill can be super effective. You can take the same approach with a jighead and a minnow (utilizing FFS makes it much easier but you don’t HAVE to have it). Slow-crawling your favorite paddle tail swimbait can get similar results too. I generally like a medium spinning rod, a jighead somewhere in the 3/16 to 5/16 range… up to 3/8 if you have deep water, and I run 8-lb Sufix Revolve to an 8-lb leader (sometimes 6 or 10) on just about every spinning setup I have.
As far as an underspin goes, love the Sneaky Underspin from Great Lakes Finesse. They’re killer for smallmouth, but will catch the largies too.
Great Lakes Finesse Sneaky Underspin
And for baits:
Great Lakes Finesse Drop Minnow
Colors: Watermelon Pearl, Green Pumpkin, Crush Shad
If you have Forward Facing Sonar, shaking a minnow can be great in colder water. Just put it on your favorite ball head. jig.
Rapala Crush City Mooch Minnow
Colors: Electric Shad, Albino Shad, Shad
For a bigger profile, you can try the Freeloader.
Colors: Electric Shad, Albino Shad, Shad
And if you want a good paddle tail option there’s a handful, but I just seem to have the most success on the Mayor as of late:
Color: Electric Shad, Albino Shad, Pro Blue Red Pearl
Jerkbait
A jerkbait is a staple in cold water, one that I have tied on just about year around, but it seems particularly effective in the colder water. The trick to jerkbait fishing is to figure out the cadence that gets the bites. Generally anglers will want to work it much slower in colder water, with longer pauses in between rips, but if you have some really clear water, you might not want to work it too slow. You just gotta figure it out with some trial and error. Depending on your type of lake, you’re gonna wanna look for long points, steep drop-offs, bluff walls and creek channels. Anywhere you can find transitions, deep to shallow pockets, and of course, if you have forward facing sonar… it does make it easier and quicker to figure out what they want.
Colors: Elegy Bone, GG Megabass Kinkuro
Colors: Northern Lights, Table Rock, Hankie Pankie
Colors: Ghost Ayu, OZ Shad, Pro Blue
Crankbait
Cranking in cold temperatures can be a winning pattern if the conditions are right. Generally, I’m looking for relatively shallow (4-6 feet) rocky bottom to entice that bite. It really just depends on your body of water, the depths you’re targeting, and the temperature of the water. Further north, I’m probably going to lean towards a flat-sided to start, so feel free to play around with a few different kinds. Slow-wind along the bottom, pausing occasionally to let it float up… cranking can be a really fun way to catch them in the winter.
Colors: Green Gizzard Shad, Citrus Shad, Rootbeer Crawdad
Colors: Spring Craw, Midnight Pearl
Ned Rig
This is a special one for all you bank anglers out there… of course, it works great if you’re out deep on the boat too, but if you’re looking for something you can throw from shore, or in your local pond… it’s a great option. All you need is a good spinning rod, and a 1/16th- 1/8th jighead. Just throw it out there and hop it around a little.
And I’ll even help you out with a relatively affordable rod to handle all your spinning needs
Fenwick Eagle Spinning Rod 7′ ML – $119.95
And two of may favorite Ned baits:
Colors: Goby, Coppertreuse, Green Pumpkin Watermelon
Colors: Green Pumpkin Goby, Goby Bryant, Green Pumpkin
*This post contains links through the Tackle Warehouse Affiliate Program. While all products are independently selected by our expert Riff Outdoors team, if you use these links to make a purchase, we may earn a commission.
And for a more detailed bait recommendation, specific to your exact location and waterbody, check out the Bass Forecast Bait Advisor.
Just input your ZIP code or share your location, and Bass Forecast will give you 5 bait recommendations, a bite rating, and suggestions for peak feeding times.
Bass Forecast Bait Advisor
What is Bass Bait AI – Powered by Bass Forecast
Our advanced bass fishing algorithms analyze over 11,000 factors, including weather shifts and bass behavior, to predict what baits will give you the best chance at success for any GPS location. Just enter your location, and it does the calculating for you.
Giving you the complete bait breakdown for major and minor Bass feeding times in any bass fishing location. Click HERE to learn more.The post 5 Best Bass Lures – January 2026 first appeared on Whiskey Riff.
