Recreational Dungeness crab limits by state run from 5 crabs per day in Washington’s Puget Sound to 20 per day in Southeast Alaska, and every West Coast jurisdiction restricts the harvest to male crabs above a minimum carapace size. Oregon allows 12 per day, California allows 10, and Washington’s Pacific coast allows 6. The size floor ranges from 5¾ inches in California and Oregon up to 6½ inches in Alaska and British Columbia. Females must be released everywhere.
Quick Reference by Jurisdiction
- California: 10 per day, 10 possession. Males only, 5¾-inch minimum. Up to 10 traps per person.
- Oregon: 12 per day, 24 possession. Males only, 5¾-inch minimum. Up to 3 pots, rings, or traps per person.
- Washington coast: 6 per day. Males only, 6-inch minimum. Hardshell only.
- Washington Puget Sound: 5 per day. Males only, 6¼-inch minimum. Hardshell only.
- Alaska (Southeast): 20 per day and in possession. Males only, 6½-inch shoulder width. Up to 5 pots per person, 10 per vessel. Thorne Bay west of Thorne Head drops to 5.
- Alaska (Kodiak and Alaska Peninsula): 12 per day. Males only, 6½-inch minimum in Kodiak. Kodiak requires a permit; Cook Inlet is closed to personal-use Dungeness harvest.
- British Columbia: Varies by management area. Males only, 165 mm (about 6½ inches) minimum.
California
California’s daily bag limit and possession limit are both 10 Dungeness crabs. Only males measuring at least 5¾ inches across the carapace may be kept, measured as the shortest distance through the body shell from edge to edge directly in front of and excluding the lateral spines. 1CDFW Marine Region Blog. New Recreational Dungeness Crab Regulations
The recreational season typically opens November 1, though portions of the coast are frequently delayed for domoic acid or whale entanglement risk. For the 2025–2026 season, the opener began on schedule statewide on November 1, 2025, but northern California waters between the Oregon border and the Sonoma/Mendocino county line were delayed due to domoic acid, with full reopening by December 30, 2025. 2CDFW Marine Region Blog. Domoic Acid Delays 2025-2026 Dungeness Crab Seasons in Northern California
Legal gear includes hoop nets, crab loop traps (snares), crab traps, and hands. Anyone using a crab trap must hold a Recreational Crab Trap Validation, which costs $2.98 and is valid for 365 days from purchase. The validation is required for minors, on free fishing days, and when fishing from a pier. It is not required for hoop nets or snares. 3California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Crabs4California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Fishing Licenses and Permits Each person may deploy up to 10 traps, and traps must be serviced at least every nine days. 5New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. 14 CCR § 29.80
California’s Risk Assessment Mitigation Program can prohibit trap use in specific fishing zones when entanglement risk to humpback whales, blue whales, or Pacific leatherback sea turtles is elevated. Recreational crabbers in trap-prohibited zones may still use hoop nets, snares, and their hands. 6California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Whale Safe Fisheries
Oregon
Oregon’s daily bag limit is 12 Dungeness crabs, with a general shellfish possession limit of two daily bag limits, or 24 crabs. Only males measuring at least 5¾ inches across the carapace may be kept, and egg-bearing females must be returned to the water immediately. 7Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Oregon Shellfish Regulations
Crabbing in bays, estuaries, beaches, tide pools, piers, and jetties is open year-round. Ocean waters are closed from October 16 through November 30. 8Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Start Crabbing Anyone 12 or older needs a shellfish license, available for a single day or a full year. A crabber may have a maximum of three pots, rings, or traps in the water at one time, and floating buoys must be marked with the owner’s name and at least one piece of identifying information such as a phone number or address. 7Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Oregon Shellfish Regulations
Washington
Washington splits its rules between the Pacific Coast and Puget Sound. On the coast (Marine Areas 1–3 and Area 4 west of the Bonilla-Tatoosh line), the daily limit is 6 Dungeness crabs, males only, in hardshell condition, with a minimum carapace width of 6 inches. 9eRegulations. Crab Rules In the Puget Sound Management Area (Marine Areas 4 east through 13), the daily limit is 5 Dungeness crabs, males only, hardshell, with a minimum of 6¼ inches. 10Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Recreational Crabbing Open July 2 Many Puget Sound Marine Areas
Coastal areas offer some form of crabbing year-round, but pot gear is prohibited from September 16 through November 30 in most coastal marine areas, and September 16 through November 14 in Willapa Bay, to protect soft-shell crabs. During those closures, snares, foldable traps, and ring nets that lie flat on the bottom remain legal; hoop nets and dome pots are not. 11Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Crab Puget Sound runs on shorter, quota-managed seasons announced each year, typically a summer window in July and August and a winter window from roughly October through December.
All recreational crabbers 16 and older need a Washington fishing license. Puget Sound crabbers must also purchase a separate crab endorsement and carry a catch record card. Every Dungeness crab kept must be recorded on the card immediately in ink, and the card must be returned after the season even if no crab were caught. Failing to submit the report adds a $10 penalty to the next year’s endorsement cost. 11Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Crab9eRegulations. Crab Rules
Alaska
Alaska’s personal-use limits are the most generous on the Pacific coast. In Southeast Alaska, the daily bag and possession limit is 20 male crabs with a minimum size of 6½ inches in shoulder width. There is no closed season and no permit requirement, with one exception: waters of Thorne Bay west of Thorne Head, where the limit drops to 5 males. 12Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Southeast Alaska Personal Use Dungeness Crab Regulations
The Kodiak area requires a permit from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and the daily harvest and possession limit is 12 male crabs at the same 6½-inch minimum. The Alaska Peninsula area also carries a 12-crab daily limit for males. Cook Inlet is closed to personal-use Dungeness crab harvest entirely. 13Cornell Law Institute. 36 CFR § 242.28 Recreational crabbers are limited to 5 pots per person and 10 pots per vessel. 12Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Southeast Alaska Personal Use Dungeness Crab Regulations
British Columbia
Anyone crabbing recreationally in British Columbia needs a tidal waters sport fishing licence and may keep only male crabs, with a minimum carapace width of 165 mm (about 6½ inches). Possessing female Dungeness crabs is illegal. Crabs must be measured immediately upon retrieval, and undersized or female crabs released gently. Daily limits vary by management area, so check the Department of Fisheries and Oceans notices for the specific location before heading out. 14Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Shellfish Rules
Since 2024, all recreational crab traps with netting in BC must include a biodegradable rot cord made of untreated cotton twine, so that a lost trap eventually opens and stops fishing. Traps must also carry a tag or float showing the operator’s name and phone number, and buoy lines must be weighted so they don’t float on the surface. 15Canada Gazette. Regulations Amending the British Columbia Sport Fishing Regulations, 1996
Bag Limit vs. Possession Limit
A daily bag limit is the maximum number a person may legally take and keep in a single day. A possession limit is the total number a person may have at any one time, including crab being transported, stored, or kept at a campsite. In Oregon, the general shellfish possession limit is two daily bag limits, so a crabber with a 12-crab daily limit may possess up to 24 crabs away from the water. In California, the bag and possession limits are both 10, so multi-day accumulation isn’t allowed. Washington and Alaska set their numbers as combined daily-and-possession figures. All crab in a person’s possession count toward the limit whether fresh, frozen, or on ice.
Why Males Only, and Why the Size Floor
Every Pacific coast Dungeness jurisdiction uses the same “3-S” approach: size, sex, and season. Male Dungeness crabs are polygamous, so one male can mate with multiple females, and removing males from the population has a smaller effect on reproduction than removing females. Females can also store viable sperm for up to two years, which further buffers the population. 16Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Dungeness Crab
Size limits let males breed before they become legal to keep. Males typically reach sexual maturity around three years but don’t hit legal harvest size until four or five, after they’ve participated in one or more mating seasons. Despite decades of heavy pressure that removes nearly all legal-size males each year, West Coast Dungeness populations have remained stable or increased, and central California abundance now averages nearly five times the levels recorded between 1970 and 2000. 17NOAA Fisheries. West Coast Dungeness Crab Stable or Increasing Even With Intensive Harvest
Penalties for Exceeding Limits
Consequences for keeping too many crabs, keeping undersized crabs, or retaining females vary by state.
In California, violating recreational fishing regulations is generally a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Some violations may be charged as infractions with fines between $100 and $1,000. A person who knowingly and intentionally takes crab in excess of quantity, size, or sex limits faces a minimum fine of $250 for a first offense and a minimum of $500 plus at least 30 days in jail for a second offense. Courts may also order up to 100 hours of community service related to natural resource conservation. 18FAO. California Fish and Game Code A fishing license or privilege is immediately suspended if a person fails to appear in court or pay a fine. 19Justia. California Fish and Game Code Section 12002
In Washington, recreational shellfish violations such as exceeding limits or taking the wrong size or sex are classified as infractions subject to civil penalties. Those civil provisions do not preclude separate criminal prosecution in more serious cases. 20Washington State Legislature. RCW 77.15.160
Domoic Acid and Season Delays
Domoic acid, a naturally occurring neurotoxin produced by certain algae, accumulates in crab tissue and can cause serious illness in humans. Along the California and Oregon coasts, health agencies test crab before each season, and fisheries are delayed or closed when toxin levels exceed federal action levels. Reopening requires two successive clean test results collected at least seven days apart. 21California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Health Advisories Season delays for domoic acid have become a recurring feature of West Coast crabbing, especially in northern California. Even when body meat tests clean, health agencies sometimes issue advisories against eating the internal organs, where the toxin concentrates. Check with the state agency before any trip.