Combos
The best bass rod and reel combos
Bass fishing asks a combo to do two contradictory things. Here is which combos handle which half.
By Sawyer V. · Last updated · How we pick
The short answer
For bass on one combo: 7′, medium to medium-heavy, spinning, with a size 35 reel and at least 12 lb of published drag. If you already know you will fish heavy cover on 15–20 lb line, buy the casting combo instead. The dividing line is the cover, not the fish.
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Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No photo Best overall for bass Ugly Stik Elite 2-Piece Spinning Combo (7' Medium / size 35) 7' medium composite rated 6-14 lb with a size 35 reel. The composite blank is the right hedge for bass fishing's split personality. | Plastics and moving baits on one outfit | |
| 2 | No photo Best for heavy cover Ugly Stik GX2 Spinning Combo (7' Med-Heavy / size 50) 7' medium-heavy rated 8-20 lb with a published 15 lb drag. The only one here you can honestly fish 30 lb braid on. | Bass in weeds, wood and pads | |
| 3 | No photo Best reel for the money Abu Garcia Max Elite Spinning Combo (7' Medium / 3000) A 7.8 oz nine-bearing 6.2:1 reel with 175 yd of 8 lb, on a 30-ton graphite blank rated from 3/16 oz. | Finesse plastics and long days | |
| 4 | No photo Best casting combo Ugly Stik Elite Casting Combo (7' Med-Heavy) 7' medium-heavy rated 10-20 lb with a 6.5:1 reel holding 175 yd of 10 lb. | Heavier lures and more casting control |
Bass fishing splits into two combos, not one
The reason a single “best bass combo” is a hard recommendation is that bass fishing asks for opposite things depending on where the fish are.
Open water bass — points, flats, deep weed edges — is a medium-power, 10–12 lb line game. You want sensitivity and casting distance. A spinning combo is genuinely the better tool.
Cover bass — laydowns, pads, matted vegetation, docks — is a medium-heavy, 15–20 lb (or 30 lb braid) extraction game. You want power and casting control. Baitcasting wins.
If you fish one lake and you know which of those it is, buy the matching combo. If you do not know yet, buy the medium spinning outfit — it fishes cover badly but it fishes everything else well, and the reverse is not true.
The line rating is where bass combos go wrong
This is the most common practical error we see recommended online: spooling 30 or 50 lb braid onto a combo rated 6–14 lb because “braid is thin so it doesn’t count.”
The diameter argument is true — 30 lb Power Pro measures 0.011 inches, the same as 12 lb mono. The strength argument is the problem. In a properly rated system, the line breaks before the rod does. With 30 lb braid on a rod rated to 14, that is no longer true, and a hard hookset into a snag breaks the rod.
If you want braid on a medium rod, 15–20 lb is the sensible band. If you want 30 lb braid, buy the medium-heavy rod that is rated for it.
What to add first
A spool of line and four lure types. That is the whole starting kit, and it is cheaper than most people expect — see the four bass lures worth starting with.
The picks, in full
Every card below lists the specs we could read off a published page, the URL they came from, and one honest reason you might not want it.
1. Best overall for bass
Ugly Stik Elite 2-Piece Spinning Combo (7' Medium / size 35)
Ugly Stik
7' medium composite rated 6-14 lb with a size 35 reel. The composite blank is the right hedge for bass fishing's split personality.
Bass fishing is two techniques with opposite requirements. Soft plastics on single hooks want a stiff, sensitive rod. Squarebills and jerkbaits on trebles want a softer one that does not tear hooks out. Most people do both on the same day.
The Elite blank is a composite — graphite and fiberglass, published as 35% more graphite than the GX2 line — which is exactly the material answer to that split. It feels more than glass and forgives more than graphite.
7 feet, medium, fast, rated 6–14 lb and 1/4–5/8 oz, seven guides plus tip. Size 35 reel at 5.2:1, three ball bearings plus roller, machined aluminum spool. Two-piece.
The drawback
Three ball bearings, and no published maximum drag on the included reel. For bass in open water that is fine; if you are pulling fish out of vegetation you want a drag figure you can actually check.
Published specs
- Model
- USELSP702M/35CBO
- Rod length
- 7 ft, 2-piece
- Power / action
- Medium / fast
- Line rating
- 6-14 lb
- Lure rating
- 1/4-5/8 oz
- Guides
- 7 + tip, PVD-coated Ugly Tuff
- Reel size
- 35CBO
- Gear ratio
- 5.2:1
- Bearings
- 3 ball + 1 roller
- Blank
- 35% more graphite than GX2
Specs read from Tackle Warehouse — Ugly Stik Elite 2-Piece Spinning Combo.
2. Best for heavy cover
Ugly Stik GX2 Spinning Combo (7' Med-Heavy / size 50)
Ugly Stik
7' medium-heavy rated 8-20 lb with a published 15 lb drag. The only one here you can honestly fish 30 lb braid on.
Bass in cover is not a fish-fighting problem, it is a extraction problem. You are not playing the fish; you are turning its head and pulling it out of something before it can wrap you. That needs power and line, and this is the only combo here rated for both.
7 feet, medium-heavy, rated 8–20 lb line and 1/4–3/4 oz lures. The size 50 reel publishes a 15 lb maximum drag at 5.1:1 — a slightly lower ratio than the smaller sizes in the range, trading retrieve speed for torque, which is the right direction for this job.
The 20 lb top end on the line rating means 30 lb braid is a defensible choice here in a way it is not on a rod rated to 14.
The drawback
Two ball bearings, and a 1/4 oz bottom on the lure rating means it will not cast a light finesse bait properly. This is a heavy-cover specialist and it is a poor general-purpose outfit.
Published specs
- Model
- USGXSP701MH/50CBO
- Rod length
- 7 ft
- Power
- Medium heavy
- Line rating
- 8-20 lb
- Lure rating
- 1/4-3/4 oz
- Reel size
- 50
- Gear ratio
- 5.1:1
- Max drag
- 15 lb
- Bearings
- 2 ball + instant anti-reverse
Specs read from Ugly Stik GX2 Spinning Combo product page.
3. Best reel for the money
Abu Garcia Max Elite Spinning Combo (7' Medium / 3000)
Abu Garcia
A 7.8 oz nine-bearing 6.2:1 reel with 175 yd of 8 lb, on a 30-ton graphite blank rated from 3/16 oz.
The 3/16 oz bottom on the lure rating is the specification that matters for bass here. Finesse presentations — a shaky head, a light Texas rig, a small wacky-rigged stickbait — are how you catch fish when nothing else works, and a rod rated from 1/4 oz does not load with them.
The reel is the best in this roundup on paper: 7.8 oz, 6.2:1, nine ball bearings plus a roller, 175 yards of 8 lb, asymmetric carbon frame and rotor.
Rod is 7 feet medium with a fast taper on a published 30-ton graphite blank, rated 6–12 lb, seven guides plus tip, high-density EVA grip.
The drawback
A 30-ton graphite blank is the wrong material for crankbaits — it pulls trebles free on the surge. If squarebills are a big part of your bass fishing, buy the composite Elite instead and accept slightly less feel.
Published specs
- Model
- MAXELT3000H/701M
- Rod length
- 7 ft
- Power / taper
- Medium / fast
- Line rating
- 6-12 lb
- Lure rating
- 3/16-5/8 oz
- Guides
- 7 + tip
- Reel gear ratio
- 6.2:1
- Reel bearings
- 9 ball + 1 roller
- Reel weight
- 7.8 oz
- Reel line capacity
- 8 lb / 175 yd
- Blank
- 30-ton graphite
Specs read from Tackle Warehouse — Abu Garcia Max ELITE Spinning Combo.
4. Best casting combo
Ugly Stik Elite Casting Combo (7' Med-Heavy)
Ugly Stik
7' medium-heavy rated 10-20 lb with a 6.5:1 reel holding 175 yd of 10 lb.
Baitcasting is genuinely better for bass in three situations: heavy line into cover, heavier lures, and casting accuracy around docks and laydowns. This combo is built for all three.
The rod is 7 feet medium-heavy fast, rated 10–20 lb and 1/4–3/4 oz, with eight guides plus tip on the Elite composite blank. The reel runs 6.5:1 with five ball bearings plus a roller, 8.5 oz, holding 175 yards of 10 lb.
That 175 yards is generous, and it means you can afford to cut back a few feet of damaged line after every session in cover without respooling every month.
The drawback
The brake system is not published, and on a baitcasting combo that is the spec that decides how frustrating your first month is. It is also the wrong first purchase if you have never cast a baitcaster — a backlash on your third cast is genuinely discouraging.
Published specs
- Model
- USELCA701MH/LPCBO
- Rod length
- 7 ft
- Power / action
- Medium heavy / fast
- Line rating
- 10-20 lb
- Lure rating
- 1/4-3/4 oz
- Guides
- 8 + tip
- Reel gear ratio
- 6.5:1
- Reel bearings
- 5 ball + 1 roller
- Reel weight
- 8.5 oz
- Reel line capacity
- 10 lb / 175 yd
Specs read from Tackle Warehouse — Ugly Stik Elite Casting Combo.
Questions people actually ask
What is a good rod and reel combo for bass fishing?
A 7' medium or medium-heavy spinning combo with a size 35 reel, rated for 6-15 lb line. That covers open-water bass on plastics and moving baits. If you fish heavy cover on 15-20 lb line, buy a medium-heavy casting combo instead.
What is the best beginner bass rod and reel combo?
A 7' medium composite-blank spinning combo. The composite handles both single-hook plastics and treble-hook crankbaits reasonably, which matters because most people fish both on the same day.
Should a bass combo be spinning or baitcasting?
Spinning for open water and for anyone learning; baitcasting for heavy cover, heavier line and casting accuracy around docks. The dividing line is the cover you fish, not the size of the fish.
Can I put braid on a beginner bass combo?
Yes, but stay near the top of the rod's printed line rating. On a rod rated 6-14 lb, use 15 to 20 lb braid. Fifty pound braid removes the line's role as the weak point in the system and puts that load on the blank.
Read next
Sources
Prices on this page come from the retailer at request time and change without notice. If we cannot get a live one we say “check price” rather than show you a number that has gone stale. How we pick.