Uni knot
Knot · Last reviewed 2026-08-10
A sliding knot that works in almost any line and does several different jobs — arguably the most useful single knot to learn.
The uni knot — the grinner, in British usage — is tied loose and then slid into position, which is the property that makes it so adaptable. Slide it hard against the eye and it is a firm attachment; stop it short and it leaves a loop that lets a lure swing freely.
It holds in monofilament, fluorocarbon and braid, which very few knots do. Two of them tied facing each other make a line-to-line join. Tied around a spool it becomes the standard way to attach backing.
If you were going to learn one knot properly and use it for everything, this would be a defensible choice. The main thing to get right is the number of turns: more in fine and slippery line, fewer in heavy.
- Used for
- Line to hook or lure
- Holds in
- Monofilament, Fluorocarbon, Braid, Backing
How to tie it
These written steps are the instruction. The diagram supports them.
- Pass the tag end through the eye and double it back alongside the standing line, leaving about 20 cm.
- Lay the tag end back over both strands to form a loop beside them.
- Pass the tag end through that loop and around both strands, five or six times for monofilament and six to eight for braid.
- Wet the knot thoroughly before closing it.
- Pull the tag end gently to close the wraps into a barrel, keeping them neat and not overlapping.
- Then pull the standing line to slide the finished barrel down against the eye — or stop it short if you want a loop.
- Trim the tag end close.
- 1. Pass the tag through the eye and lay it back parallel to the standing line.
- 2. Fold the tag back to make a loop lying over both strands.
- 3. Take four to six turns with the tag around BOTH strands, inside the loop.
- 4. Wet it, pull the tag to close the barrel, then slide it down to the eye.
Tying a uni knot
Knot · Verified — every stage checked against a canonical reference — reference: Learn to fish: tying the knot; Knots Every Angler Should Know · signed off by AI editorial review (Sprint 54) — every stage checked against the reference's numbered steps, rendered and inspected on 2026-08-18
Describe this diagram in words
Four panels. Panel one: the tag passed through a hook eye and laid back parallel to the standing line, so two strands lie together. Panel two: the tag folded back over both strands to form a loop, then taking four turns around both strands, drawn as one continuous strand passing alternately in front and behind. Panel three: the turns closing into a barrel as the tag is pulled, with an arrow showing that the tag is drawn first. Panel four: the closed barrel slid down against the eye with the tag trimmed, the hook below.
How this drawing was produced
Redrawn in Sprint 54. The previous figure drew the turns as disconnected diagonal dashes and printed TURNS GO ROUND BOTH STRANDS underneath a hook that ran through the text. Turns are generated by `weave()` and the panel's lower strip is reserved for the label.
Finishing it properly
- Close the barrel with the TAG end first, and only then slide it home with the standing line — doing it in the other order produces a mess.
- Wet it before closing; the friction of a barrel closing dry is significant.
- Use six to eight turns in braid, five or six in monofilament, four or five in very heavy line.
How it fails
The uni fails through too few turns for the line, which lets the barrel slip rather than lock, and through wraps that crossed over each other as the barrel was formed, which concentrates the load on one turn. In braid specifically, using the monofilament turn count is the commonest mistake — braid needs more. A slipped uni, like a slipped clinch, leaves a curled tag end.
The one knot to learn first, and why its adjustability matters more than its strength
If somebody is going to learn a single terminal knot and use it everywhere, the uni is the defensible choice, and the reasons are about versatility rather than about being strongest.
IT WORKS IN EVERYTHING. Monofilament, fluorocarbon, braid and backing all hold in a uni, because the security comes from a barrel of wraps compressed around two strands rather than from any property peculiar to one material. The number of turns is adjusted for the line — fewer for heavy monofilament, more for fine or for braid — which is the mechanism by which one knot covers materials that would otherwise need three.
IT DOES NOT NEED THE LURE TO PASS THROUGH ANYTHING. Unlike the Palomar, the uni is tied on the standing line and slid down to the eye, so it can be used on any terminal item regardless of size or shape. That single fact is why it is the answer whenever a Palomar is not available, and why anybody fishing large plugs or heavy jigs ends up using it.
AND THE ADJUSTABILITY IS THE PROPERTY PEOPLE UNDERUSE. Because the finished barrel slides on the standing line, the knot can be seated hard against the eye or STOPPED SHORT to leave a loop. That means one knot gives both a rigid connection and a loop connection depending on how far it is drawn down. Where a small hard lure needs freedom of movement to work properly, a uni left with a loop provides it without learning a separate loop knot.
IT ALSO DOUBLES AS A LINE-TO-LINE JOIN. Two unis tied facing each other and drawn together — the double uni — connect two lines of similar diameter, which means the same technique covers the terminal connection and the leader connection.
THE LIMITS ARE WORTH KNOWING. Too few turns for the line lets the barrel slip rather than lock, and this is the commonest way it fails; braid needs more turns than monofilament and heavy line needs fewer than fine. And it is a bulkier knot than a Palomar, which matters when it must pass through rod rings.
SO THE SELECTION LOGIC IS: uni as the default, since it is the one that covers every line type and every terminal item; Palomar where the lure allows it and braid is involved; and a dedicated loop knot only where lure action genuinely demands one.
Practitioner consensus
Widely and independently recommended by experienced anglers and specialist sources. This is real angling knowledge, not proof: controlled evidence for it is limited, and FishingHQ records it as convention rather than as a demonstrated effect.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Established knot practice and the selection of knots for particular line types and applications.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Angling Times — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Contemporary knot practice in the British angling press.Background and mechanism onlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Where to go next
Where it is used
- Carp fishingMainline to swivel and lead arrangement, in monofilament or braid, on tackle that will be left under tension for hours. The uni is the general-purpose knot that holds in both.
- LedgeringThe general-purpose join from mainline to swivel, lead link or hook. The catalogue records the uni as holding in monofilament, fluorocarbon, braid and backing, which is why it survives the move from a coarse mainline to a braided one.
- Popping and stickbaitingHeavy surface work where the connection is made to a leader rather than to the mainline, and where the lure is too bulky for a loop to pass over. The uni is tied around the eye and drawn down onto it.
- Predator fishingMainline to trace swivel. The trace itself is wire and is crimped or twisted rather than knotted, so the knot's job stops at the swivel — which is a distinction worth making explicitly, because tying line direct to a pike is how fish are left trailing tackle.
- Sea fishingThe one knot that covers most sea connections in most materials, which matters more here than anywhere else: sea traces are built from many components and the angler tying them is frequently doing it in the dark and in the wind.
- SpinningThe alternative where the lure is too large or too heavily trebled to pass a loop over, which is the Palomar's one stated limitation. The uni is tied around the eye rather than over the lure and holds in every material the catalogue records for it.
- SurfcastingBeach traces are built from swivels, links and beads, and every one of those components is joined to a length of line. This is the knot that does it, in the monofilament body line surf traces are built from.
What these connections rest on (7)
Practitioner consensus — 7 connections
Widely and independently recommended by experienced anglers and specialist sources. This is real angling knowledge, not proof: controlled evidence for it is limited, and FishingHQ records it as convention rather than as a demonstrated effect.
Carp fishing
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Angling Times — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Contemporary UK lure and predator angling practice as reported by practitioners, including braid-to-lure connections and finesse rigging.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- How to Tie Fishing Knots — uni, blood, improved blood, surgeon's and loop knots — Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (Take Me Fishing) (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: A contemporary national angling-participation body's knot guide, covering the connections used in modern lure fishing and the materials they are tied in.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Ledgering
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Knots Every Angler Should Know — Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 2015 (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: A state fisheries agency's knot guide: which knot is set out for which connection, and the fishing it is presented for.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Learn to fish: tying the knot — Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, 2025 (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: The same connections set out independently by a second state wildlife agency, written separately and agreeing on purpose and material.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Popping and stickbaiting
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Angling Times — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Contemporary UK lure and predator angling practice as reported by practitioners, including braid-to-lure connections and finesse rigging.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- How to Tie Fishing Knots — uni, blood, improved blood, surgeon's and loop knots — Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (Take Me Fishing) (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: A contemporary national angling-participation body's knot guide, covering the connections used in modern lure fishing and the materials they are tied in.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Predator fishing
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Pike Anglers' Club of Great Britain guidance on pike care and handling — Pike Anglers' Club of Great Britain, 1977 (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: Pike unhooking and handling guidance, including what a multi-hook deadbait arrangement means for the person taking it out and for the fish.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Pike and the Pike Angler — Stanley Paul, 1981 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Pike angling practice including deadbait presentation, trace construction and the unhooking that follows from it.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Sea fishing
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Sea Angler — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Long-running published description of British sea angling practice, including trace construction, dropper loops and the knots used in them.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- General angling website restatements of established technique — Various (Credible secondary source)Relied on for: Widely restated public description of which knots are conventionally tied for which sea connections, recorded as practitioner consensus rather than as scholarship.Background and mechanism onlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Spinning
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Knots Every Angler Should Know — Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 2015 (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: A state fisheries agency's knot guide: which knot is set out for which connection, and the fishing it is presented for.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Learn to fish: tying the knot — Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, 2025 (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: The same connections set out independently by a second state wildlife agency, written separately and agreeing on purpose and material.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Surfcasting
Which knot a kind of fishing conventionally uses is established practitioner knowledge that converges across independent traditions and independent state agency guides, and it is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result. Nothing here ranks knots by strength: see `why-knot-strength-tables-disagree` for why that number does not exist.
- Sea Angler — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Long-running published description of British sea angling practice, including trace construction, dropper loops and the knots used in them.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- General angling website restatements of established technique — Various (Credible secondary source)Relied on for: Widely restated public description of which knots are conventionally tied for which sea connections, recorded as practitioner consensus rather than as scholarship.Background and mechanism onlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
What it joins
- Wire trace deadbait rigThe uni holds in the monofilament or braid above the trace swivel, which is where the join actually is.
- Monofilament lineOne knot that will attach a hook, a swivel, a lure or a spool, which is why it is the knot to learn if you learn one.
- Running legerA running leger needs a stop and a swivel connection, and the uni knot serves both without a second knot type.
What these connections rest on (3)
Practitioner consensus — 3 connections
Widely and independently recommended by experienced anglers and specialist sources. This is real angling knowledge, not proof: controlled evidence for it is limited, and FishingHQ records it as convention rather than as a demonstrated effect.
Wire trace deadbait rig
Standard knot for the connection, independently described.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: The grinner knot for attaching swivels and terminal components.Citation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Trout & Salmon — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: The same knot used for equivalent connections in an independent tradition.Citation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
The rig and the join it needs at the mono end.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Knot selection for joining line to terminal tackle and line to line.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- IGFA International Angling Rules and World Record Requirements — International Game Fish Association (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: The role of knots and connections in terminal tackle, and the line-class conventions that depend on them.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Monofilament line
The line and its most general-purpose connection.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Knot selection for joining line to terminal tackle and line to line.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- IGFA International Angling Rules and World Record Requirements — International Game Fish Association (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: The role of knots and connections in terminal tackle, and the line-class conventions that depend on them.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Running leger
The rig and the general-purpose connection it depends on.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Knot selection for joining line to terminal tackle and line to line.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- IGFA International Angling Rules and World Record Requirements — International Game Fish Association (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: The role of knots and connections in terminal tackle, and the line-class conventions that depend on them.States this directlyPassage read and verified
Worth understanding first
- Choosing a knot for the line you are usingThe uni is the clearest case of a knot whose turn count is chosen for the material rather than fixed, which is the idea the decision record is built around.
- Wetting, seating and tag ends: the three things that decide whether a knot holdsA uni tied dry and seated by the tag end is a different knot from a uni tied wet and drawn down by the standing line, and only one of them holds.
What these connections rest on (2)
Practitioner consensus — 2 connections
Widely and independently recommended by experienced anglers and specialist sources. This is real angling knowledge, not proof: controlled evidence for it is limited, and FishingHQ records it as convention rather than as a demonstrated effect.
Choosing a knot for the line you are using
A mechanism edge from a record to the reasoning beneath it. How knots and rigs behave is established practitioner knowledge converging across independent angling traditions, and is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result.
- Angling Times — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Contemporary UK coarse and match angling practice as reported by practitioners, including rig and knot convention.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Sea Angler — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Contemporary UK sea angling practice as reported by practitioners, including rig construction, leaders and line choice.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Wetting, seating and tag ends: the three things that decide whether a knot holds
A mechanism edge from a record to the reasoning beneath it. How knots and rigs behave is established practitioner knowledge converging across independent angling traditions, and is labelled as consensus rather than as tested result.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Comprehensive angling practice including knots, leaders, terminal tackle and the reasoning behind rig arrangements.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Still-Water Angling — MacGibbon & Kee, 1953 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Stillwater angling practice including terminal tackle, hook holds and the mechanics of playing fish.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Instead of this
- Haywire twistThe comparison the wire-trace rig needed and did not have. A uni knot is the correct connection for the NYLON end of a wire trace and is incapable of terminating the wire itself. They are not competing answers to one question; they are the two connections at opposite ends of the same trace, and treating either as general-purpose is how a trace gets built wrong.
- Improved clinch knotAnd the substitution goes one way: the uni holds in braid where the clinch does not.
What these connections rest on (2)
Practitioner consensus — 2 connections
Widely and independently recommended by experienced anglers and specialist sources. This is real angling knowledge, not proof: controlled evidence for it is limited, and FishingHQ records it as convention rather than as a demonstrated effect.
Haywire twist
A correction rather than a preference. `wire-trace-deadbait-rig` pointed only at the uni knot, which cannot build its defining component, and this edge names the boundary between the two materials explicitly.
- Pike and the Pike Angler — Stanley Paul, 1981 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Pike angling practice including wire trace construction and the terminations single-strand wire requires.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Pike Anglers' Club of Great Britain guidance on pike care and handling — Pike Anglers' Club of Great Britain, 1977 (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: Pike rig and handling guidance, including the welfare case for wire and what a trace failure means for a fish that breaks off.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Sea Angler — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: British sea angling practice: shock leaders, multi-hook trace construction and the dropper loops a trace is built from.FishingHQ's interpretation of what it saysCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- General angling website restatements of established technique — Various (Credible secondary source)Relied on for: Widely restated descriptions of established connection convention, recorded as practitioner consensus rather than as scholarship.Background and mechanism onlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Improved clinch knot
The material-specific reliability difference is described independently.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Knot selection by line type.Citation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Trout & Salmon — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Knot practice for modern line materials from a separate tradition.Citation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Safety reading
What these connections rest on (1)
Authoritative guidance — 1 connection
Stated by a fisheries authority, scientific institute or recognised angling body. Authoritative, but summarising rather than demonstrating.
Hook injuries
A link from the arrangement to the substantial safety topic describing the injury it is associated with, rather than a warning restated on the record itself.
- RoSPA water safety information and UK accidental drowning statistics — Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (Water-safety or diver-training authority)Relied on for: That angling injuries are dominated by hooks entering the person handling them, and the circumstances in which that happens.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Angling Trust guidance for anglers — Angling Trust (Angling or fisheries organisation)Relied on for: Guidance to anglers on handling hooks and terminal tackle, and on what to do when a hook goes in.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
History and culture
What these connections rest on (1)
Practitioner consensus — 1 connection
Widely and independently recommended by experienced anglers and specialist sources. This is real angling knowledge, not proof: controlled evidence for it is limited, and FishingHQ records it as convention rather than as a demonstrated effect.
Nylon, and what synthetic line changed
Where a terminal arrangement came from and what it displaced, drawn from the angling literature and from widely restated practitioner accounts rather than from scholarship.
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Comprehensive angling practice including terminal arrangements, leaders and knots, and the development of each within the sport.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Still-Water Angling — MacGibbon & Kee, 1953 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: Mid-twentieth-century angling practice written across the change to synthetic line, covering terminal arrangements and the materials they depend on.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
Sources for this page
- Knots Every Angler Should Know — Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 2015 (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: The tying sequence and turn count as a US state fisheries agency sets them out in numbered steps, read in full during the Sprint 41 reference search.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Learn to fish: tying the knot — Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, 2025 (Government fisheries body)Relied on for: The same sequence stated independently by a second state wildlife agency, written years apart from the first and agreeing with it on every stage and turn count.States this directlyPassage read and verified
- Freshwater Fishing — Macdonald & Jane's, 1975 (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: The construction of the grinner knot and its use for hooks, swivels and spools.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
- Trout & Salmon — Bauer Media (Specialist angling publication)Relied on for: That the same knot is standard practice in game angling for attaching flies and joining leader material, from an independent authorial tradition.States this directlyCitation checked — the work exists and is described correctly
How FishingHQ labels evidence is explained in the evidence policy.