Where you can lobster
Florida has thousands of square miles of water in which you can legally lobster. As long as four things are true: it's during lobster season, you have a saltwater fishing license and a spiny lobster permit, you're following the size and bag limits, and you're outside a no-take zone, you can lobster there. For the full rundown, including specific local rules, see the Florida lobstering rules and the season dates. To find actual structure, start with our free lobster spots and coordinates.
Where you can't: Florida's no-take zones
A no-take zone is exactly what it sounds like: water where harvesting lobster (and usually everything else) is prohibited. They protect coral, breeding stock, and nursery habitat. The main ones in South Florida and the Keys:
- Sanctuary Preservation Areas (SPAs) and ecological reserves on the famous reefs (Molasses, French Reef, Looe Key, the Sambos, and many more).
- National parks: Everglades and Dry Tortugas are fully closed to harvest, and Biscayne National Park allows it only east of the islands, outside its sanctuary and Coral Reef Protection Areas.
- The Biscayne Bay/Card Sound Lobster Sanctuary, a permanent no-take breeding refuge on the bay side.
- John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, which closes entirely to lobstering during the two-day mini-season.
- Unpermitted casitas and other artificial structures, where harvest is prohibited within at least 10 yards.
On the water, you need it live
A web map like this one is great for planning at the kitchen table. The problem is that the zones are only useful when you can see where you are in relation to them, out on the water, often past cell range. That's what the Lobsterly app is built for: every no-take zone drawn against your live GPS position, fully offline, so you always know whether you're clear to drop. It also puts 3,000+ lobster spots, the productive Lobster Zones, and 4,500+ artificial reefs on the same map.
Frequently asked questions
Where can you lobster in Florida?
In open recreational saltwater across South Florida and the Keys, in season, with a license and spiny lobster permit, anywhere that's not a designated no-take zone. Most of the water is open; the map above shows the protected areas to avoid.
How do you know if a spot is a no-take zone?
Check a no-take zone map before you drop. The categories are listed above. The Lobsterly app shows every zone relative to your live GPS position, offline, which is the only reliable way to know on the water.
Can you lobster in Biscayne and Everglades National Parks?
Everglades and Dry Tortugas are closed to all lobster harvest. In Biscayne you can take lobster only east of the barrier islands, outside the sanctuary and the Coral Reef Protection Areas.