Stardew Valley: Should You Pick The Fisher or Trapper Profession?

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Determine which Fishing skill profession is best for you

Co-authored by BlaDe and Hannah Dillon

Last Updated: February 3, 2025 Fact Checked

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About Fisher

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About Trapper

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Which one is better?

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Expert Interview

Once you reach level 5 in any skill in Stardew Valley, you must make a choice of profession. Knowing which profession to choose can be a little daunting, especially because you can't change them very easily. In this article we'll go over the Fisher and Trapper professions for the Fishing skill and explain why Fisher is the better choice for most players.

Things You Should Know

The Fisher profession gives you a 25% boost to the value of all fish you catch, which can help you get more money at the beginning of the game.^{[1]
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BlaDe
Stardew Valley Expert

Expert Interview}
The Trapper profession reduces the materials needed to craft crab pots from 40 Wood and 2 Iron Bars to 25 Wood and 3 Copper Bars.
Fisher is the best choice for most players, but if Trapper fits your playstyle better you should select that profession.

Section 1 of 3:

About Fisher

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This makes the fish you catch worth even more when you sell them in the farm box, and can be a great way to make money in the early stages of the game.^{[2]
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BlaDe
Stardew Valley Expert

Expert Interview}^{[3]
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If you select Fisher, your level 10 profession options will be Angler and Pirate. Angler makes fish worth 50% more (which doesn't stack with the 25% from the Fisher profession) and Pirate doubles your chance to find treasure.^{[4]
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Section 2 of 3:

About Trapper

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^{[5]
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BlaDe
Stardew Valley Expert

Expert Interview} You get the recipe to craft crab pots at Level 3 of the Fishing skill. Normally, crab pots require 40 Wood and 3 Iron Bars, but with the Trapper profession you can make them with 25 Wood and 2 Copper Bars.^{[6]
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If you select Trapper, your level 10 profession options will be Mariner and Luremaster. Mariner makes it so crab pots will no longer produce junk items, and Luremaster makes it so crab pots no longer require bait.^{[7]
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Section 3 of 3:

Which one is better?

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Most players prefer the Fisher profession because it's more lucrative. In the early game, the Fisher profession can earn you more money as you'll get more gold for selling the fish that you catch.^{[8]
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BlaDe
Stardew Valley Expert

Expert Interview} If you catch fish that are above normal quality (silver, gold, or iridium) you will get even more gold for these fish with the Fisher profession, which can really help in the beginning of the game when you don't have much passive income.^{[9]
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- The Fisher profession also increases the sale price of most crab pot fish, so even if you select the Fisher profession, crab pots are still a viable way to make passive income.
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Trapper is work-intensive and requires checking crab pots daily to maximize profits. Many players say they don't like having to check their crab pots daily, and would prefer to increase the profit on the fish they catch.^{[10]
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- Fish caught in crab pots are always normal quality. You can get silver, gold, and iridium quality crab pot fish only by foraging them. On the flip side, fish caught with a fishing rod can be any quality, and with the Fisher profession that will only increase their value further.
While most players prefer Fisher, if you think Trapper sounds like it fits your playstyle better, then you can select Trapper. Trapper could be a good profession for someone who doesn't like to fish but still wants some passive income.^{[11]
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