The Top Spinning Reels Under $100
Written by John Wren|
Buy a Pflueger President in a 30–35 for most bass. Buy Sienna if you want parts. Buy Trion if the ticket is still tight. Match the rod size.
Key takeaways
- Read the size.
- President is the classic.
- Close the bail by hand.
- Rinse salt.
A spinning reel under $100 is a drag you can still set, a bail you will close with your hand, and a size that matches the rod — not a $400 Maguro sticker on a $90 body. The short answer: buy a Pflueger President if you want the classic under-$100, a Shimano Sienna if you want parts, a Trion if the wallet is still tight.
Short version. Under $50 is the floor. A baitcaster under $100 is the other fork. Pair with a rod that matches. Check live prices.
This page is the reel. A dock shop can still service a name. This is President, Sienna, Trion, a GX2 if you need the stick.
2500–3000 is the freshwater all-around. Read the size, not the brag.
1000–2000 is trout and panfish. 4000 is heavier freshwater and a rinse if you touch salt. Do: match the rod’s line rating. Don’t: a 5000 on an ultralight. Smallmouth lures if the rock is already the job. Catfish wants the bigger body.
Gear ratio around 5:1 is a retrieve you can live with. A smooth 8-pound drag beats a peaky 15. Fill to a hair below the lip. Overfill is wind knots. Braid wants backing or tape on the arbor.
President is the under-$100 classic
The Pflueger President is the live reel we named: graphite body, a 10-bearing-class story, a braid-ready spool, a drag you can still set light. Check live prices.
Do: size 30–35 for most bass. Don’t: a locked drag in a hot garage. Trion if the ticket is still the floor. Rinse if you touch salt. Back the drag off when you rack the rod.
Sienna and Trion are the name-brand floor
The Shimano Sienna is the live parts-path reel we named. The Pflueger Trion is the live first-good-reel we named. Check live prices.
They will not feel like a Stradic. They will still feel like a reel in year three if you rinse them. The under-$50 page is the long floor lecture. Step here when the drag is the thing you can feel.
A stick that will survive a dock
The Ugly Stik GX2 7-foot spinning rod is the live one-rod answer we named if you still need the blank. Check live prices.
Do: a rod you have already broken in. Don’t: a broomstick combo from an endcap. A jerkbait rod if the pause is already the season. Close the bail with your hand. Cranking a cheap bail shut is how cheap bails die.
| Reel | Best job |
|---|---|
| Pflueger President | The under-$100 classic |
| Shimano Sienna | Parts and smoothness at the floor |
| Pflueger Trion | A first good reel |
| Ugly Stik GX2 | The stick if you still need one |
Read the size. Check live prices.
President for most, Sienna if you want parts, a hand on the bail
That is the under-$100 reel. Check live prices. Rinse. Then fish.
Guests will try to write a $400 sticker on a $90 body
Say the rule at the house: a Pflueger President for most, a Sienna if you want parts, a Trion if the wallet is still the floor. If the answer is a max-drag brag and a laugh, sit. A reel under $100. Under $50.
Do: read the size. Don’t: a 5000 on an ultralight. The plan page. A jerkbait rod if the pause is already the season. A swimming plug if the other Saturday is already a swimming plug.
The President we named is the live under-$100 classic. The Sienna and Trion we named are the live floor. The GX2 we named is the live stick. Check live prices.
A rinse the same night is the salt license
Under-$100 reels are not sealed inshore machines. Flush the bail, handle, and spool. Do not store it salty. Kayak states if the other week is already a hull. Kayak habits.
Back the drag off when you rack the rod. A locked drag in a hot garage is how washers take a set. Check live prices. Under $50 if you fish 12 days a year.
Close the bail with your hand. Cranking a cheap bail shut is how cheap bails die. Austin water. Texas fishing.
Fill to a hair below the lip
Overfill is wind knots. Underfill is a short cast you will blame on the reel. Braid wants backing or tape. Mono wants to be fresh enough that it does not coil like a phone cord.
Do: a backyard hour until the bail motion is automatic. Don’t: a crowded pier with braid and a treble as trip one. A repeatable hour. A snack.
Bass destinations if the other week is already a reservoir. One classroom. New water or a new reel or a new wind — not all three.
The same bin every trip
President or Sienna, GX2, a bag for the license. Don’t: a scavenger hunt at a dark ramp. Check live prices. First aid. The plan page.
Kids: a $90 spinning reel is perfect. They will drop it. Buy two. Do not hand a child a baitcaster and a lecture. Kids outside. Under $50.
Leave some gas. Come home wanting the next door. A seventh bearing is not the fish.
President for most, Sienna if you want parts, a hand on the bail
That is the under-$100 reel. Check live prices. A reel under $100. Under $50. The plan page.
Rinse. Then fish. A smooth drag beats a peaky number on the box.
Last line: a $400 sticker is not this aisle. A President you will rinse is. Check live prices.
A weekday rinse is the reel you still have
Do: flush the bail if you touched salt. Don’t: a locked drag in a hot garage. A reel under $100. Under $50.
The President we named still wants size 30–35 for most bass. Check live prices. Read the size, not the brag. The plan page.
Close the bail with your hand. Cranking a cheap bail shut is how cheap bails die. Austin water. Texas fishing.
Fill to a hair below the lip
Overfill is wind knots. Braid wants backing or tape. A jerkbait rod if the pause is already the season. A swimming plug if the other Saturday is already a swimming plug.
The GX2 we named still wants a break-in. Check live prices. A broomstick combo from an endcap is the wrong dollars. A repeatable hour.
Kayak states if the other week is already a hull. Kayak habits. A vest still belongs on the water.
The same bin every trip
President or Sienna, GX2, a bag. Don’t: a scavenger hunt at a dark ramp. Check live prices. First aid. A snack.
Kids: they will drop it. Buy two. Do not hand a child a baitcaster and a lecture. Kids outside. Under $50.
Leave some gas. A rainy plan B if the office already called. The new reel can wait.
President for most, Sienna if you want parts, a hand on the bail
That is the under-$100 reel. Check live prices. A reel under $100. Under $50. The plan page.
Last line: a $400 sticker is not this aisle. A President you will rinse is. Then fish.
Bass destinations if the other week is already a reservoir. This page is still the drag you can set.
Write the under-$100 reel card before you leave the house
Say the kit out loud: Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail. If a guest tries to add a seventh job, sit. That is a successful Saturday. A reel under $100 Under $50 The plan page.
Do: the same pocket every time. Don’t: a scavenger hunt at dark. Check live prices. A jerkbait rod A swimming plug.
A cancel you already wrote is a cancel you will still take. Austin water A repeatable hour. Lightning, a flood stage, a fire letter — pavement.
The five-minute leave after the under-$100 reel
Coil so the next day can start. Empty the granola. Mice eat webbing and foam. Dry the bag. Then the bin. Check live prices on the kit you named: Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail.
Do: look at the sheath, the strap, the lockout, the buckle. Don’t: a damp trunk and a March surprise. A reel under $100 The plan page.
Tell someone the place and the hour. A quiet hour is a search. Under $50 A repeatable hour. Come home and say you are moving again.
Guests will try to rewrite the under-$100 reel as a dare
A shared job can be a short loop and a known kit. A dare into a hole you cannot see the exit of is not a date. Kids out of the bite. The photo waits until the buckle check. Austin water A jerkbait rod.
Check live prices. Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail is still the honest pile. A swimming plug A reel under $100. One classroom. New water or new wind or a new hull — not all three.
Under $50 if the other Saturday is already the sibling page. This page is still the under-$100 reel. That is enough.
Last line on the under-$100 reel
Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail. Check live prices. The plan page A repeatable hour Austin water.
Last line: a catalog dare is not the day. A card you wrote is. Wear the lamp on the walk. Come home wanting Thursday.
A reel under $100 Under $50 A swimming plug. The next door can wait until this kit is still in the same bin.
Write the under-$100 reel card before you leave the house
Say the kit out loud: Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail. If a guest tries to add a seventh job, sit. That is a successful Saturday. A reel under $100 Under $50 The plan page.
Do: the same pocket every time. Don’t: a scavenger hunt at dark. Check live prices. A jerkbait rod A swimming plug.
A cancel you already wrote is a cancel you will still take. Austin water A repeatable hour. Lightning, a flood stage, a fire letter — pavement.
The five-minute leave after the under-$100 reel
Coil so the next day can start. Empty the granola. Mice eat webbing and foam. Dry the bag. Then the bin. Check live prices on the kit you named: Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail.
Do: look at the sheath, the strap, the lockout, the buckle. Don’t: a damp trunk and a March surprise. A reel under $100 The plan page.
Tell someone the place and the hour. A quiet hour is a search. Under $50 A repeatable hour. Come home and say you are moving again.
Guests will try to rewrite the under-$100 reel as a dare
A shared job can be a short loop and a known kit. A dare into a hole you cannot see the exit of is not a date. Kids out of the bite. The photo waits until the buckle check. Austin water A jerkbait rod.
Check live prices. Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail is still the honest pile. A swimming plug A reel under $100. One classroom. New water or new wind or a new hull — not all three.
Under $50 if the other Saturday is already the sibling page. This page is still the under-$100 reel. That is enough.
Last line on the under-$100 reel
Pflueger President, Shimano Sienna, Pflueger Trion, GX2, a hand on the bail. Check live prices. The plan page A repeatable hour Austin water.
Last line: a catalog dare is not the day. A card you wrote is. Wear the lamp on the walk. Come home wanting Thursday.
A reel under $100 Under $50 A swimming plug. The next door can wait until this kit is still in the same bin.
Also in the magazine
Keep going with under $50, baitcasters under $100, spinnerbait rods, and the plan. Check live prices.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best spinning reel under $100?
Pflueger President for most people. Shimano Sienna if you want a parts path. Pflueger Trion if the wallet is still the floor.
What size?
2500–3000 for most freshwater. 1000–2000 for trout. 4000 if you rinse salt.
Braid or mono?
Either. Braid wants backing or tape. Fill to a hair below the lip.
What rod?
Ugly Stik GX2 7-foot spinning if you still need the blank.
When do I leave this aisle?
When the drag is the thing you feel, or you fish salt more than a couple of days a year.
Spinning or baitcaster?
Spinning first. A baitcaster is a different skill. See the baitcaster-under-$100 page when you have a reason.