Fishing is quite a pleasant and beneficial activity in Stardew Valley While some rewards can be a bit grindy to get, using fish bait will speed up the process and make your fishing day more productive.
Before you go any further, bait can only be attached to the fiberglass rod and the iridium rod. You can also insert it into a Crab Pot. Both rods are available for purchase at the Fish Shop. The Fiberglass rod requires Fishing level 2 to buy and the iridium rod requires Fishing level 6 to buy,
How to Attach Bait
The process of attaching the bait to the rod is quite simple but involves different buttons depending on the platform you are playing on. Here’s how to attach bait to the rod on all the platforms including mobile:
Attach Bait on PC
- Press “E” to open the inventory
- Left-click on the bait to select the whole stack. Or right-click to select only one
- Right-click on the rod to attach the bait
- right-click on the road again to remove the bait
Attach Bait on PlayStation
- Press the options button to open the inventory
- Press cross on the bait to select the whole stack. Or square to select only one
- Press square to attach the bait to the rod
- Press X to detach the bait from the rod
Attach Bait on Xbox
- Press the menu button to open the inventory
- Press A on the bait to select the whole stack. Or X to select only one
- Press X to attach the bait to the rod
- Press X to detach the bait from the rod
Attach Bait on Switch
- Press the plus button to open the inventory
- Press A on the bait to select the whole stack. Or Y to select only one
- Press Y to attach the bait to the rod
- Press X to detach the bait from the rod
- Press Y to detach the bait from the rod
Attach Bait on Mobile
- Open the inventory
- Drag and drop the bait onto the rod
With the bait attached, you can now get to fishing. Each cast will consume one bait regardless of whether you catch anything or not.
What Does Each Bait Do and How to Craft Them
Fishing rods don’t really need bait to use them and fish in Stardew Valley. But it will speed up the process and you can get a few bonuses depending on which bait you are using.
In the table below you can find all the baits currently available in the game, what they do, and what you need to get them.
| Name | Description | Purchase | Crafting | Recipe Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bait | Causes fish to bite faster. Must first be attached to a fishing rod. Reduces the delay before a nibble by 50%, and lowers the chance of getting trash items. | 5g (Fish Shop) | x1 Bug Meat | Level 2 Fishing |
| Magnet | Increases the chance of finding treasures when fishing. Increases the treasure chance by 15%. | 1,000g (Fish Shop) | x1 Iron Bar | Level 9 Fishing |
| Wild Bait | A unique recipe from Linus that gives you a chance to catch two fish at once (does not apply to Legendary Fish). Reduces the delay before a nibble by 62.5% | n/a | x10 Fiber x5 Slime x5 Bug Meat | Linus (4-heart event) |
| Magic Bait | Allows you to catch fish from any season, time, or weather, from whichever type of water you cast into. | 5 Qi Gems (Qi’s Walnut Room). You get 20 magic bait when purchased | x1 Radioactive Ore x3 Bug Meat | Qi’s Walnut Room (20 Qi Gems) |
Once you have a basket of bait ready, you can head out to the best fishing locations and start your fishing day. There are quite a few different fish that you can catch, and these are only some of them:
Stardew Valley: How to Catch a Catfish | Stardew Valley: How to Catch a Sturgeon | Stardew Valley: How to catch a Red Snapper
