The short answer on Florida spearfishing laws: spearfishing is legal in Florida's salt water with a regular saltwater fishing license, illegal in all fresh water, banned within 100 yards of public swimming beaches, and governed by a long FWC list of species you may never spear — snook, red drum, tarpon and goliath grouper among them. This guide turns the official rules into plain English: where you can't shoot, the Monroe County quirks, the full prohibited-species logic, the gear bans, and how to confirm the current rules before you splash.
Can you spearfish in Florida? Yes: licensed, saltwater only
Most people spearfishing in Florida need a Florida saltwater fishing license — the same one rod-and-reel anglers carry. The main exemptions: children under 16, and Florida residents 65 and older (with proof of age and residency). Everything you take must still respect the normal seasons, sizes and bag limits for that species; the spear doesn't get its own quota.
The bright line to remember: all freshwater spearfishing is prohibited in Florida — you cannot spear either freshwater or marine species in fresh water, full stop. If that surprises you, the wider picture of which states allow inland spearing is in our pillar on where spearfishing is legal in the US and beyond. For the state-by-state detail, see our guide to freshwater spearfishing laws by state.
Where you cannot spear: beaches, piers, jetties and parks
Florida's location rules are about keeping spears away from people. Spearfishing is prohibited:
- Within 100 yards of a public swimming beach, a commercial or public fishing pier, or any part of a bridge from which fishing is allowed.
- Within 100 feet of any part of a jetty above the surface of the sea — with one exception: the last 500 yards of a jetty that extends more than 1,500 yards from shore.
- In any body of water under the jurisdiction of the Department of Environmental Protection's Recreation and Parks division — in practice, state parks.
- In Everglades National Park and Dry Tortugas National Park, where even possession of a speargun is prohibited.
One county-level oddity worth knowing: in Volusia County's inland waters, spearing is banned except for flounder and sheepshead taken with a barbed spear of three or fewer prongs — a legacy gigging rule.
Monroe County and the Keys: the special rules
The Florida Keys run on their own rulebook. Spearfishing is prohibited in Monroe County from Long Key north to the Dade County line — a big stretch of the Upper Keys — and in Monroe County canals. Add the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary's no-take zones scattered through the rest of the island chain, and the Keys demand more map-reading than anywhere else in the state. South of Long Key, legal spearfishing water exists and fishes well, but check the sanctuary zone maps for every single spot before you dive it.
Prohibited species: the full FWC list explained
Florida's no-spear list is long, but it follows three understandable patterns:
- Prized inshore gamefish reserved for hook and line: snook, red drum, spotted seatrout, weakfish, bonefish, tarpon, permit, pompano, African pompano and tripletail.
- Vulnerable or protected large species: goliath grouper, Nassau grouper, billfish, sharks, sturgeon, manta ray and spotted eagle ray.
- Ornamental reef fish, protected as entire families: angelfish, butterflyfish, parrotfish, damselfish, seahorses, puffers and triggerfish — with gray and ocean triggerfish as the exceptions you may take.
- Crustaceans: lobster, blue crab and stone crab may never be speared — a speared lobster is an illegal lobster no matter the season.
Everything not on the list falls back to the standard regulations: legal size, season and bag limit for that species still apply to your spear.
Banned gear: powerheads, bangsticks and rebreathers
Three pieces of equipment are prohibited for taking fish in Florida waters: powerheads, bangsticks and rebreathers. The one carve-out is invasive-species control — rebreathers may be used when harvesting lionfish. Regular open-circuit scuba, on the other hand, is legal for spearfishing in Florida, which makes the state an outlier worldwide; if you're curious where else that's true, see our guide to where spearfishing on scuba is legal and illegal.
Checking current FWC rules before you dive
Florida's rules move — seasons close, zones change, species get added. Before a trip:
- Read the official FWC spearing page at myfwc.com (search "FWC spearing") — it is short, current and authoritative.
- Check the species you actually plan to target in the current saltwater regulations or the Fish Rules app, which applies your GPS location.
- Diving the Keys? Overlay the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary zone maps on your spots.
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