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Best Sunglasses for Fishing

Protect your vision and spot the bite with these great options.

No mere fashion accessory to be added without a second thought, sunglasses are mission-critical gear for the offshore angler. Staring into the sun’s brutally harsh glare for that first sign of a bite is all part of the game, and it’s truly impossible without a good pair of polarized glasses on your face. Here are our top picks.

Hook Last Call (A), Parallel Zion (B), Costa Tuna Alley Pro (C), Fin Nor Flybridge (D), Parallel Acadia (E), Smith Shoal (F), Bajío Stiltsville (G). Jon Whittle

A. Hook Last Call

Designed by optical-industry pros who also love fishing, Hook Optics are designed to give fishermen the edge in any aquatic environment, especially offshore. Last Call was named in honor of Capt. Franky Pettolina, president of the Ocean City Marlin Club and a passionate offshore angler who passed away in 2021.

B. Parallel Zion

Based in Southern California, the Parallel Eyewear team enjoys a variety of outdoor sports, including fishing. The Zion frame in Amber Stripe really stands out, especially when combined with the BR16 Neox polarized lens, which offers glare protection, a crystal-clear image, and a perfect level of tint.

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C. Costa Tuna Alley Pro

Costa’s ultra-popular Tuna Alley Pro style now comes in one of the company’s top-selling frame colorways, Tiger Shark. Pro Series upgrades include sweat-management channels and eye-wire drains, improved Hydrolite rubber, adjustable nose pads, top hooding and side shields, and metal keeper slots. Match it with either gray or green polarized glass lenses for maximum performance.

D. Fin Nor Flybridge

With classic matte-black frames and a unique ­silver-mirror glass lens with a gray base, the Flybridge offers a nontraditional look while also blocking glare from the sides. And less glare means it’s easier to spot that distant weed line or free-jumping sailfish—from the flybridge, of course.

E. Parallel Acadia

This style from Parallel is the most popular, simply because it looks great on just about everyone. The highly durable rubberized black frames and gray polarized Neox lenses, combined with proprietary locking hinges, offer both performance and durability in any situation.

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F. Smith Shoal

Inspired by the classic ladies cat-eye designs of the 1950s, the Shoal from Smith Optics has a subtle retro feel and low-profile side shields for peripheral light coverage. The ChromaPop polarized lenses cut glare and enhance contrast to reduce eye fatigue. The Sky Tortoise frame style is shown.

G. Bajío Stiltsville

Named for a cluster of stilted shacks built in what is now Biscayne National Park just south of Miami, this style from Bajío is a favorite with all fishermen, inshore and offshore. The gray tortoiseshell frames give them a throwback feel that Stiltsville founder “Crawfish Eddie” Walker would love.

Pelagic Kahuna

Pelagic Kahuna sunglasses
Pelagic Kahuna Jon Whittle

Using Pelagic’s exclusive Polarized Mineral Glass lens technology, the Kahuna features an extra-wide wraparound style that does a great job blocking side glare while also offering a clear view of the spread in any light. Also included is Tuff-Lens scratch protection for added durability. These are professional-grade optics.

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Salt Life Cortez

Salt Life Cortez sunglasses
Salt Life Cortez Jon Whittle

Made in Italy with high-quality polarized lenses, the Cortez is a lightweight style that is designed to offer extreme comfort and all-day wearability. The green mirror/copper lenses cut the glare even on the brightest of days.

Costa Mayfly

Costa Mayfly sunglasses
Costa Mayfly Jon Whittle

A brand-new ladies design for 2023, Mayfly has maximum light blockage and a wider field of view, plus fully adjustable, textured, and vented nose pads for a secure fit and fog-free lenses. With ­­
eye-wire drains and channels, water and sweat will stay away from your eyes too.

Pelagic Fish Whistle

Pelagic Fish Whistle sunglasses
Pelagic Fish Whistle Jon Whittle

Utilizing a proprietary blend of elements, Pelagic’s PMG lens technology delivers the most optically correct glass lens on the market. No matter what environmental conditions you might face during the day—sunny, cloudy, wet or dry—this design provides an extra layer of protection for your eyes that you can count on, day in and day out.

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Bajío Vega

Bajio Vega black sunglasses.
Functional and stylish frames that work for both men and women. Courtesy Bajío

Bajío’s Vega features a bold, high-coverage wrap design with wide temples to block sidelight and protect your eyes from the sun. These polarized, color-enhancing lenses with proprietary blue light-blocking LAPISTM technology cuts through the glare so you can laser-focus on the bite, all while reducing eye strain and fatigue. Lens options include seven lightweight polycarbonate colors and six in glass.

Fin-Nor North Drop

Fin-Nor North Drop sunglasses
Don’t leave the dock with them Courtesy Fin-Nor

For just 10 short miles, the Puerto Rico Trench in the British Virgin Islands takes a turn north. And that’s all it takes to create the inside turn of all turns, where anglers tangle with the blue marlin and live on the covers of magazines like ours. The North Drop frames are spring-hinged, uber-comfortable, and block unnecessary light with integrated side shields. Three frame- and four lens-color (glass or polycarbonate) options  available.

Costa Del Mar Rincon

Best Sunglasses for Fishing
The Rincon is a hot new style from Costa. Jon Whittle

Named for a world-renowned California surf break, Rincon is a hot new style from Costa that is equally at home on the blue water. Costas are a favorite among billfish enthusiasts thanks to their incredible optic clarity and durability. Shown is the matte Atlantic blue frame with silver mirror lens.

Pelagic The Mack

Best Sunglasses for Fishing
The Mack looks great on a wide variety of anglers. Jon Whittle

The Mack, shown in black matte frame and blue mirror lens, combines Pelagic’s mineral glass lens technology with its proprietary Zero-Glare polarization and Tuff-Lens scratch protection, all in a frame style that looks great on a wide variety of angler.

Pelagic Fish Hook

Best Sunglasses for Fishing
The Fish Hook offers unparalleled visual acuity. Jon Whittle

According to Pelagic, the XP-700 polycarbonate lenses in its Fish Hook style (shown here in green dorado color pattern with blue mirror lens) offer unparalleled visual acuity plus superlight weight to reduce fatigue. There are five layers of polarization plus an anti-reflective coating on the lenses to help cut the glare.

Maui Jim Big Wave

Best Sunglasses for Fishing
The Big Wave combines crisp optics with light weight. Jon Whittle

Big Wave features MauiPure, Maui Jim’s most popular lens material. It combines optics that are nearly as crisp as glass with light weight and excellent scratch and shatter resistance. Big Wave is shown here in a translucent matte-gray rubber frame with blue mirror lens.

Maui Jim Byron Bay

Best Sunglasses for Fishing
The Byron Bay is a perfect choice for the boat or the beach. Jon Whittle

Byron Bay, another popular style from Maui Jim shown here in green-stripe rubber frame, is a perfect choice for the boat or the beach. Maui HT lenses offer extra contrast and color, while the superthin glass provides the crispest optics available, in a lens that is 20 percent thinner and lighter than standard glass. They are also scratch and solvent resistant.

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