Walleye length to weight chart
What a walleye weighs at every length from 10 to 32 inches, why fall and prespawn females run heavy, rough age at length, and how to measure one. A 20 inch walleye is about 2.9 lb.
·4 min read·fishline
A 20 inch walleye in average shape weighs about 2.9 lb. A 25 incher is closer to 5.9 lb, and the 10 pound fish everybody is after usually stretches past 29.5 inches. Here is the full chart, plus what makes a walleye heavier or lighter than it looks.
| Length | Weight | Rough age |
|---|---|---|
| 10 in | 0.32 lb | about 2 years |
| 12 in | 0.57 lb | 2 to 3 years |
| 14 in | 0.93 lb | about 3 years |
| 16 in | 1.4 lb | 3 to 4 years |
| 18 in | 2.1 lb | 4 to 5 years |
| 20 in | 2.9 lb | 5 to 6 years |
| 22 in | 3.9 lb | 6 to 7 years |
| 24 in | 5.2 lb | about 8 years |
| 26 in | 6.7 lb | about 10 years |
| 28 in | 8.5 lb | 13 to 14 years |
| 30 in | 10.5 lb | 15+ years |
| 32 in | 12.9 lb | 15+ years |
Total length, nose to the tip of the pinched tail. Weights are for a walleye in average shape. A fat fish, like a female before the spawn, weighs more and a thin one less, which a girth measurement picks up. Rows past 30 inches are bigger than typical for the species.
Reading the chart
The weights come from the walleye formula fishline uses, W = L^3.18 / 4,730, with length in inches and weight in pounds. Walleye are long and lean, so they weigh a lot less than a bass of the same length: a 20 inch largemouth is about 5.1 lb, while a 20 inch walleye is about 2.9 lb. A few landmarks:
- The 2 pound eater most of us keep is around 18 inches.
- A 3 pound walleye is about 20 inches.
- The 5 pound mark lands near 23.5 inches.
- An 8 pounder is usually 27.5 inches or more.
- A 10 pound walleye needs about 29.5 inches.
Like every fish, the weight climbs fast at the top end. The jump from 26 to 28 inches is worth about 1.8 lb, more than a whole 15 inch walleye weighs.
Why some walleye weigh more
Walleye spawn in early spring, and the big females carry their eggs through the winter. A female caught in late fall, under the ice or just before the spawn can sit well above the chart. The same fish after the spawn is noticeably thinner. Walleye in fertile lakes with plenty of baitfish also tend to be thicker than walleye in cold, clear, food-poor water.
If you want a better number on a fat fish, measure the girth around the thickest part of the body and use length times girth times girth, divided by 800. A 26 inch walleye with a 15 inch girth comes out at 7.3 lb, where the chart says 6.7 lb for an average one. The fish weight calculator switches to the girth formula as soon as you enter one.
How old is that walleye?
On fishline's walleye growth curve, a 15 inch fish is 3 to 4 years old, a 20 inch fish is 5 to 6 years, and a 25 inch fish is about 9 years. Those are rough middles. Walleye in northern and cold, clear lakes grow slower and are often older at the same length, while fish in rich, southern reservoirs grow faster. Past about 26 inches the curve flattens out and length says little about age. Biologists who need the real number count rings on the otoliths, small bones in the fish's inner ear. For a quick estimate at any length, try the fish age calculator.
Measuring and photographing walleye
Walleye have a spiny front dorsal fin, sharp gill plates and a mouth full of teeth, so handle them with a little care. Lay the fish on a bump board with the mouth closed, nose to the bump, tail pinched, and read total length at the tip of the tail. For the photo, hold the fish level with one hand behind the head and the other under the belly near the tail, side-on and close to your body.
A lot of walleye get caught in low light, so photos come out dark. Turn on the flash or point a headlamp at the fish. fishline needs a clean outline more than it needs a sunset. There are more tips on the walleye page, and the sauger pagehas the chart for walleye's slimmer cousin.
Or skip the board: snap the photo and let fishline measure it.