When you're heading on a fishing trip, the essential equipment doesn't end at simply your rod.
One of the most essential pieces of kit you need is a good pair of fishing sunglasses.
Why? Fishing sunglasses aren't just ordinary sunglasses. While protecting your eyes from harmful UV rays, they're specially designed to reduce glare from the water and enhance your vision of the underwater world. You'll find different types of lenses, frames and styles that suit different fishing conditions and preferences depending on where and when you like to fish best.
What should you look for in a pair of fishing sunglasses?
When choosing your fishing sunglasses, pay attention to:
- Lens material: The lens material affects the clarity, durability and weight of your fishing sunglasses. The most common lens materials are polycarbonate and glass. Polycarbonate lenses are lightweight, shatterproof and offer good optical quality. Glass lenses are heavier, but they provide the best clarity and scratch resistance.
- Lens colour: This affects the contrast, brightness and colour perception of your fishing sunglasses. Different lens colours are suitable for different light conditions and water environments. For example, blue-mirrored lenses are ideal for open-water fishing in bright light, as they block out most of the light and reduce glare. Green-mirrored lenses are great for sight fishing in variable light, as they enhance contrast and depth perception. Amber or copper lenses are best for low-light or cloudy situations, as they increase brightness and improve visibility.
- Lens polarisation: This is the most important feature of fishing sunglasses, as it eliminates glare from the water and allows you to see below the surface. Polarised lenses filter out horizontal light waves that cause glare, and let only vertical light waves pass through.
This improves your visual clarity and reduces eye strain and fatigue. To check if your fishing sunglasses are polarised, look at a computer screen through them. If the screen appears black or very dark, your lenses are polarised.
We've rounded up all of the best fishing sunglasses.
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Gardner Hi-Lo Polarised Fishing Sunglasses
These Gardner specs are designed for angling with a polarised lens. The Hi-Lo polarised sunglasses also offer the dual benefit of having interchangeable tinted lenses of light (amber) and dark (grey) to suit varying light conditions. The amber lenses are perfectly suited to slightly overcast or changeable days whilst the grey lenses are ideal for really bright days. If you're fishing in environments with changing light, these glasses offer the perfect solution.
Buy now £17.35, Angling Direct
Fortis Eyewear OverWraps Polarised Fishing Sunglasses
You'll want polarised lenses when it comes to fishing and these Fortis Eyewear OverWraps Polarised Fishing Sunglasses are renowned for ticking all the boxes. Designed to fit over regular glasses, they're ideal for prescription glasses users who want to enjoy the benefits of polarised lenses without having to switch over every time they head to the shore, boat or river.
These polarised lenses help to eliminate unwanted light and cut out glare, which allows you to see deeper into the water and spot fish more easily. Better yet, they have soft rubber inserts on the frame arms that ensure they don't slip off the head and provide maximum comfort.
Buy now £39.89, Amazon
ESP camo polarised fishing sunglasses
These ESP camo polarised fishing sunglasses come with camo side arms to reduce glare - perfect for sunny days when you want to focus on the task at hand. They have high-quality large lenses with a grey tint that offers excellent polarised vision and protects the eyes from harmful UV rays - something you'll appreciate more if you're a regular angler. They're also some of the most budget-friendly fishing glasses around.
Buy now, eBay
Fortis finseeker polarised sunglasses
The Fortis Finseeker polarised fishing sunglasses have a lightweight durable recycled TR90 nylon frame that will withstand the toughest conditions. With vents to minimise internal fogging and rubber nose pads and tips on the arms to provide comfort, they're designed for long days when you don't want any distractions from the task at hand.
Choose between the Brown 247 Lens for high contrast definition that is great for low to bright light conditions, the Amber AMPM Lens for low light conditions at dawn and dusk or the Green Lens, a great all-day lens that maintains natural colours whilst absorbing blue light.
Buy now £119.99, Sportfish
RIVBOS Polarised Sports Sunglasses
You'll be spoilt for choice when it comes to choosing the best colour of these RIVBOS Polarised Sports Sunglasses. With TAC polarised and mirror-coated lenses that effectively filter all UV400, UVA, UVB and harmful blue light, their high-quality polarised lenses can also eliminate glare, maintain colour integrity and perfectly protect the eyes. The ultra-lightweight design of these fishing glasses makes them perfect for fishing, racing, skiing, sailing and other outdoor activities.
Buy now £19.89, Amazon
Remaldi polarised fishing glasses
Partial to dropping your glasses in the water or forgetting they're on your head? These Remaldi polarised fishing glasses come complete with a neck cord and cleaning bag, which means you'll always know exactly where they are. Their polarised lenses help remove horizontal glare, whilst their +2.50 magnifying bifocal lens allows improved vision for close-up fiddly tasks, such as tying fishing flies.
Buy now £14.70, Amazon
Ray-Ban RB3699 polarised polished-metal sunglasses
Keep things sophisticated with a pair of Ray-Ban's. The polarised polished-metal sunglasses are a sleek choice for when you're out catching fish. Complete with plenty of features that can be beneficial for anglers, they have dark grey lenses with Chromance treatment that can enhance colours, contrast and clarity, giving you better depth perception and vision when you're out on the boat.
Like most fishing sunglasses, they also have polarised lenses that can remove glare from water and other light-reflecting surfaces, allowing you to see clearly into the water and spot fish and underwater structures.
Buy now £102.90, Selfridges
Korda Polarised Wraps Sunglasses
The Korda Polarised Wraps Sunglasses are considered to be the best sunglasses for fishing by many anglers because they have a wrap-around design, which means they cover your eyes from all angles and protect them from the sun, wind and dust.
This can also prevent any distractions or blind spots that might affect your fishing abilities. They have brown lenses, which are ideal for most light conditions to enhance contrast and depth perception. The glasses are lightweight and comfortable, even after hours of wear.
Buy now £19.95, Amazon
RidgeMonkey Pola-Flare Seeker Fishing Sunglasses
Featuring industry-leading, seven-layer composite lenses, these stylish yet functional sunglasses offer unrivalled protection from the sun, whilst helping to reduce glare and minimise eye strain. The protective exterior lens layer is coated with an anti-streak and anti-scratch coating, ensuring these glasses are durable enough to withstand the harshest of outdoor environments.
The tried-and-tested Vibrant Amber tint of the polarised lens is a firm favourite amongst anglers for spotting fish and feature finding by significantly reducing the surface glare on water and naturally enriching colours, providing much greater clarity of what is in front of you.
Buy now £28.99, Angling Direct
Korda 4th Dimension Fishing Sunglasses
These Korda 4th Dimension Sunglasses have been designed in order to ensure that you can enjoy crystal clear vision over the water, regardless of the weather conditions. Designed with a slimline frame, they come in two different lens options, each of which has been paired with a matching frame colour.
They're ideal for angling in variable light conditions and are as effective in bright sunlight as they are when the clouds draw in. This makes them ideal for use in variable UK weather conditions. The best part? The incredible colour enhancement allows you to more easily distinguish dark fish under the water and helps you to identify the prime features to increase your angling accuracy.
Buy now £24.99, Angling Direct
Verdict
Budget-friendly yet impressively effective, the Gardner Hi-Lo Polarised Fishing Sunglasses are versatile enough to be worn in all kinds of conditions and come with interchangeable lenses, too.
