Choosing a small outboard for a fishing boat sounds simple until you start comparing horsepower, engine weight, shaft length, starting systems, fuel tanks, shallow-water capability, and how much gear you normally carry. A motor that feels perfect on a lightweight jon boat can be frustratingly underpowered on a heavily loaded aluminum fishing boat.
For this guide, I reviewed current manufacturer specifications alongside established outboard buying guides and specialist marine articles rather than relying solely on general knowledge. A consistent theme across the research is important: the best small fishing outboard isn’t necessarily the motor with the best specification sheet—it is the motor correctly matched to the boat and the way you fish. West Marine, for example, emphasizes horsepower, shaft length, motor weight and fuel system as interconnected buying considerations, while recent specialist coverage similarly stresses matching the engine to the hull rather than choosing by brand alone.
There isn’t one universal definition. For this guide, we’re concentrating primarily on 2.5–20 HP portable and small-boat outboards.
At the lower end, a 2.5–6 HP engine makes sense for small dinghies, lightweight aluminum boats and applications where portability matters. Once you move toward roughly 8–20 HP, you’re entering a much more useful range for anglers carrying another person, batteries, fuel, tackle, coolers and other equipment.
Don’t choose horsepower from boat length alone.
Start with the boat manufacturer’s horsepower rating. Never exceed the hull’s maximum rated horsepower. You should then consider total loaded weight and the performance you actually need. Current West Marine guidance, for example, places many 12–16-foot aluminum fishing boats in roughly the 15–30 HP category, although the appropriate engine ultimately depends on the individual hull.
That distinction matters. An angler slowly trolling a sheltered lake has completely different requirements from someone who wants a loaded 14-foot aluminum boat to plane quickly.
After comparing specifications, portability, fishing-friendly features and how the engines fit different small-boat applications, these are six particularly compelling choices.
| Outboard | Power | Why We Like It | Best Application |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yamaha F2.5 | 2.5 HP | Extremely portable | Dinghies & very light boats |
| Suzuki DF6A | 6 HP | Excellent portability/features | Small fishing boats |
| Tohatsu MFS6D | 6 HP | Practical all-round portable | Jon boats & inflatables |
| Honda BF9.9 | 9.9 HP | Refined features & charging | Serious small-boat fishing |
| Yamaha F15 | 15 HP | Strong all-around choice | Aluminum fishing boats |
| 20 HP class | 20 HP | Better loaded performance | Larger small fishing boats |
The Yamaha F2.5 occupies a different role from the larger engines in this guide. It isn’t intended to turn a heavily loaded fishing boat into a performance machine. Its appeal is simplicity and portability.
Current Yamaha specifications list the F2.5 as a 72 cc single-cylinder engine producing 2.5 HP at 5,500 rpm. Depending on configuration, weight is approximately 37–40 lb (17–20 kg), with 15- and 20-inch shaft options. It uses manual starting and provides 360-degree steering.
That combination makes it attractive when your motor needs to come off the transom after almost every trip.
Best for: lightweight tenders, very small aluminum boats and anglers prioritizing portability.
Less suitable for: heavily loaded boats, fast travel between fishing spots or applications where getting onto plane is important.
The Suzuki DF6A hits one of the sweetest spots in the portable-outboard market.
Suzuki lists the DF6A family at approximately 24 kg (53 lb) in its lightest configuration. The platform uses a 138 cc single-cylinder four-stroke and is designed so the motor can be stored on three different sides without oil leakage when handled according to Suzuki’s instructions.
That’s more useful than it sounds.
Portable outboards spend considerable time being carried between a vehicle, garage, dock and transom. Storage orientation can therefore matter nearly as much as horsepower.
The DF6A also provides forward-neutral-reverse gearing rather than forcing the operator to rotate the engine for reverse.
For an angler running a compact jon boat or inflatable, that combination of manageable weight, useful power and easy transportation makes the Suzuki particularly appealing.
Best for: small jon boats, inflatables and portable fishing setups.
Standout feature: excellent power-to-portability balance.
Don’t overlook Tohatsu when comparing portable outboards.
The current MFS6D is a 123 cc single-cylinder four-stroke producing 6 HP. Tohatsu lists the lightest North American configuration at approximately 57 lb (26 kg) and offers 15-, 20- and 25-inch transom-height configurations.
There are several small details anglers may appreciate.
The engine offers forward-neutral-reverse shifting, shallow-water drive and through-prop exhaust. Certain versions combine an integral fuel tank with the ability to connect an optional external tank, giving owners more flexibility for longer trips. Tohatsu also designed the motor for three-position storage.
For fishermen who launch from remote areas, being able to transport and mount an engine without wrestling with excessive weight is a genuine advantage.
Best for: jon boats, inflatables, tenders and anglers wanting a straightforward portable four-stroke.
Why it makes the list: useful features without turning a portable motor into an unnecessarily complicated package.
Move up to 9.9 HP and small outboards begin feeling substantially more capable.
The Honda BF9.9 uses a 222 cc, two-cylinder four-stroke engine rated at 9.9 HP at 5,500 rpm. Honda offers electric/recoil starting depending on configuration, plus 15-, 20- and 25-inch transom-height versions.
For anglers using electronics, one particularly interesting feature is charging output. Honda lists a 12-amp alternator for electric-start models and 6 amps for manual-start versions.
That can matter when you’re running equipment such as a fishfinder throughout a long fishing day.
Honda also provides a shallow-water drive function, and an optional Power Thrust configuration is designed to improve thrust when moving heavier loads.
The trade-off is weight. Depending on shaft configuration, Honda lists approximately 92–107 lb dry, so this isn’t something most anglers will want to carry casually from the truck to the shoreline every weekend.
Best for: small fishing boats where the engine normally stays mounted.
Why we’d choose it: smooth small-boat performance, charging capability and practical fishing-oriented features.
Once your hull can accommodate it, the 15 HP category becomes particularly interesting.
Recent specialist small-outboard research describes the 15–20 HP class as a practical range because it can provide enough power to plane many aluminum boats, jon boats and inflatables while remaining considerably more manageable than larger outboards.
The Yamaha F15 is therefore worth serious consideration for anglers who have outgrown the limitations of ultra-portable engines.
Compared with a 2.5 or 6 HP motor, a 15 HP outboard is less about simply moving the boat and more about getting you, another angler and fishing equipment to your destination efficiently.
Best for: 12–14-foot-class aluminum fishing boats where permitted by the hull’s capacity rating.
Why we like this category: enough power to make the boat genuinely useful for longer fishing trips without immediately moving into large-outboard territory.
Sometimes the smartest recommendation isn’t a specific brand.
It’s a horsepower class.
If you’re carrying two anglers, batteries, fuel, anchors, tackle boxes, a cooler and fishing electronics, the boat you launch is considerably heavier than the empty hull listed in a brochure.
That’s where a 20 HP engine can make sense.
Current specialist guidance on small outboards notes that 15–20 HP motors can be particularly practical for aluminum fishing boats and jon boats. It also warns that significantly underpowering a planing hull can force the engine to operate near wide-open throttle more frequently under load.
So don’t automatically buy the smallest engine simply because it consumes less fuel on paper.
A properly matched larger engine running comfortably can be preferable to an undersized engine working hard throughout every trip.
Here’s a more useful way to make the decision.
You fish from a very lightweight craft, normally travel alone, don’t need high speeds and frequently remove the engine from the boat.
You want more authority with passengers and gear but still operate a relatively small fishing boat.
Your hull is designed for it, you carry substantial fishing equipment, frequently fish with another person or need considerably better performance over longer distances.
The boat’s capacity plate remains the deciding authority.
This is one of the easiest ways to buy the right engine in the wrong configuration.
Outboard shaft length needs to correspond with transom height. West Marine’s current guidance uses approximately:
A shaft that’s incorrectly matched can contribute to ventilation, poor thrust or improper water-intake positioning.
For a new small gasoline outboard today, four-strokes dominate many mainstream portable lineups.
For fishing specifically, they make a lot of sense. Quiet running is valuable when you’re spending hours trolling or moving around calm water, while modern portable four-strokes combine low fuel consumption with increasingly manageable weight.
That doesn’t make every two-stroke obsolete.
A used two-stroke can still appeal to an angler prioritizing low weight, mechanical simplicity or easy field servicing. But availability and emissions rules vary considerably by location.
For most buyers purchasing a new small fishing outboard, I’d start by comparing four-strokes.
There’s another option increasingly worth considering: electric propulsion.
Electric motors are particularly attractive for anglers who value quiet operation and fish relatively predictable distances.
But don’t compare an electric motor with a gasoline outboard using a horsepower-equivalent number alone. You need to consider:
battery capacity → usable range → boat weight → speed → charging availability → replacement battery cost.
Gasoline still has a substantial advantage when you need quick refueling and long-distance flexibility.
Electric makes much more sense when silence, low-speed fishing and convenient home charging matter more.
Product brochures contain dozens of specifications. For fishing, I’d narrow them down.
Shallow-water operation: extremely valuable if you regularly fish flats, rivers or shallow lake edges.
Forward-neutral-reverse: improves maneuverability around docks and fishing structure.
Engine weight: critical if you remove the motor regularly.
Alternator output: increasingly useful when running fishfinders and other electronics.
Integrated vs external fuel tank: integral tanks simplify short outings; external tanks make longer days easier.
Tiller ergonomics: often overlooked until you’ve steered for several hours.
Parts and dealer availability: an excellent motor isn’t particularly useful if obtaining routine service parts in your region becomes difficult.
Most of these engines aren’t limited to freshwater, but saltwater changes your maintenance responsibilities.
Corrosion protection becomes especially important. For example, Honda specifically describes its BF8/BF9.9 corrosion-protection system as incorporating a multi-layer paint process, sacrificial anodes and waterproof connectors. Tohatsu likewise describes marine-grade aluminum, sacrificial protection and corrosion-resistant treatment on its portable range.
Regardless of brand, follow the manufacturer’s saltwater maintenance instructions and thoroughly flush the cooling system with fresh water after saltwater use where specified.
If I were narrowing the entire list down by actual use rather than simply declaring one universal winner:
For maximum portability: Yamaha F2.5.
For a portable 6 HP setup: Suzuki DF6A or Tohatsu MFS6D.
For a more substantial small fishing setup: Honda BF9.9.
For an aluminum fishing boat that needs real usable power: start comparing 15–20 HP models, provided the hull is rated appropriately.
This is also why rankings from different outboard guides can appear contradictory. One publication may crown a 2.5 HP engine because portability is its main criterion, while another chooses a 15 HP because performance matters more.
Both can be correct.
The most expensive mistake is buying by horsepower alone.
A 6 HP motor that weighs 55 lb and a 9.9 HP engine approaching 100 lb create very different ownership experiences. Likewise, buying an underpowered engine because it’s cheaper can leave you disappointed once passengers and equipment are aboard.
Also avoid assuming every version of the same engine is identical. Shaft length, starting system, tiller/remote controls, alternator, trim and fuel-system configurations can vary within one model family.
Always verify the exact model code before paying.
There isn’t a credible single answer for every fishing boat.
For a lightweight portable setup, Suzuki’s DF6A and Tohatsu’s MFS6D stand out because they combine genuine portability with useful small-boat features. Yamaha’s F2.5 makes more sense when minimizing weight matters more than speed. Honda’s BF9.9 is a compelling step upward when you want additional power and features such as substantial charging capability.
For anglers running a more substantial aluminum fishing boat, however, I’d strongly consider the 15–20 HP class rather than automatically choosing an ultra-portable engine. The correct choice ultimately comes down to the hull rating, loaded boat weight, transom height, fishing environment and how often the engine needs to be transported.
The smartest buying rule is simple:
Choose the motor for the boat you actually put on the water—not the empty boat sitting on the trailer.
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