Bass boats have low, sleek profiles and are built to fish with two or three anglers on board. Tournament style boats are more than 18-feet long with 150 to 250 horsepower. For casual angling and buddy tournaments, aluminum boats from 16 to 18 feet with horsepower from 25 to 150 are more common. Livewells to keep the catch alive are mandatory, as is an electric trolling motor on the bow (front of boat).

An older usage of the term “bass boat” refers to a type of sport fishing boat once popular for fishing for striped bass off the Atlantic coast of the United States. These bass boats were about 25 feet long and featured a hull form similar to a New England lobster boat with a sharp entry, rounded bilges, and relatively little deadrise at the stern. They were powered with inboard engines and had a top speed of about 20 knots. The typical deck configuration featured a long cockpit with a windshield at the forward end and a cuddy cabin in the bow. Examples still in production include the Fortier 26 and the Dyer 29. Some outboard-powered sport fishing boats emulate bass boat styling including the Steiger Craft Block Islands and the Parker 2310 and 2510; however, these boats have a more sharply V’ed hull form and are designed for higher speeds.