Lowrance Fish Finder: Eagle, Eagle Eye, HOOK Reveal, Elite FS and HDS PRO

On most small boats, the Lowrance fish finder you want is an Eagle, from $123. Want live sonar under $1,000? Buy the Eagle Eye 9 Live, the cheapest complete live sonar from any maker. If you’ve got a bass boat and you’ll add ActiveTarget 2 later, get an Elite FS 9. Prices are Lowrance’s US list, read on October 12, 2026, except the ActiveTarget kits and the rival setups, which are dealer or maker prices. Verdicts with a reviewer’s name are theirs. The rest are our picks from the spec sheets and the prices. We didn’t test any of these ourselves.

For $999 the Eagle Eye 9 gives you live sonar on a 9 in screen, transducer and charts included. You’d pay more for an Elite FS 9 with a 3-in-1 transducer and no live sonar at all ($1,119.99).

Which Lowrance for your boat?

Find your boat in the left column, and you’ve got your pick.

What do Lowrance’s names mean?

The model names tell you what’s in the box. Learn these and you can read the price tables at a glance.

• Broadband and CHIRP. CHIRP sends a sweep of frequencies instead of one: 140–250 kHz on the high setting, 85–155 kHz on medium and 28–51 kHz on low. That sweep is what pulls a fish apart from the bottom, and two fish apart from each other. Broadband is the older single-frequency 2D sonar, pinging at 200, 83 or 50 kHz. The Eagle 4x sits on the line between the two. Lowrance’s own spec table ticks both single-frequency and CHIRP for it, and Outdoor Life calls it single-frequency. So count on plain sonar, and treat any CHIRP you get as a bonus.
• DownScan and SideScan are Lowrance’s down imaging and side imaging, the photo-like pictures that show you rocks, timber and bottom. SideScan reaches up to 600 ft (183 m) to each side.
• SplitShot and TripleShot are one transducer each. SplitShot gives you CHIRP and DownScan, and TripleShot adds SideScan on top. Active Imaging 3-in-1 is the higher-resolution step up from TripleShot, for the Elite FS and HDS. Active Imaging HD is the 1.2 MHz version on HDS PRO.
• FishReveal draws the CHIRP fish targets over the DownScan picture. Even as a beginner, you see arches on a photo of the structure instead of specks on a blank column. You get it on every current Lowrance except the Eagle 4x, which has no DownScan to draw on.
• Genesis Live draws a half-foot contour map of the lake from your own sonar as you idle, in real time. You’ll find it on the Eagle (not the 4x, which has no GPS), Elite FS and HDS PRO.
• C-MAP is the chart that comes loaded. Every Eagle but the 4x comes with US Inland, with 17,000-plus lakes, or the DISCOVER OnBoard bundle. The HDS PRO and the Elite FS 10 and 12 ship with C-MAP DISCOVER OnBoard. That’s 1 ft contours on 19,000-plus US lakes and 9,400-plus Canadian ones, plus coastal cover. The Elite FS 7 and 9 listings still quote 1 ft contours on 15,000-plus US lakes. Wondering if your Lowrance comes with maps? The “x” models (Eagle 4x, HOOK Reveal 5x and 7x) are the catch: they don’t. The HOOK Reveal x models plot GPS without a chart, and the 4x has no GPS at all.
• ActiveTarget 2 is Lowrance’s forward-facing sonar. Scout is its overhead view, the one you’ll see called Perspective on a Garmin and Landscape on a Humminbird. Ghost X and Recon are Lowrance’s current trolling motors.

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What do fish look like on a Lowrance?

On the 2D CHIRP screen, a fish is an arch. You’ll see it build as the fish enters the sonar cone, peak when it’s under the boat and fade as it leaves. A half arch is a fish that clipped the edge of the cone. Two fish close together show up as two arches instead of one blob, thanks to CHIRP’s sweep.

On DownScan, you’re looking for a bright dot or a short dash, often with a shadow. The beam’s too thin for a fish to draw an arch through it. FishReveal gives you both at once: the CHIRP fish targets drawn on top of the DownScan picture of the timber or rock they hold on. The how to read a fish finder page reads bait, bottom and the thermocline the same way.

What does each series cost?

Lowrance sells five series today. The last row is the two older flagships. You can still buy the HOOK Reveal, but it’s left Lowrance’s main menu, which now reads Eagle, Elite FS and HDS PRO. The fish finders hub sets this ladder beside Garmin’s and Humminbird’s.

Most of the spread in each row is the transducer. A bare Elite FS 9 display is $969.99, and $1,119.99 with the Active Imaging 3-in-1. An HDS PRO 10 is $2,349.99 bare and $2,449.99 with Active Imaging HD. Buy the bare display only if you’ve already got a Lowrance transducer on the boat.

You can still pick from two dozen versions of the HOOK Reveal on Lowrance’s list. They run from the $229.99 HOOK Reveal 5x SplitShot to the $849.99 HOOK Reveal 9 TripleShot with US and Canada charts. The HDS LIVE and HDS Carbon are the two flagships before HDS PRO. Both still run ActiveTarget 2 and both still sit in Lowrance’s list. That makes a used one your cheap way into a networked live-sonar boat.

What is the cheapest Lowrance for each job?

Find what you want done, and this table gives you the cheapest unit that does it.

Read down from the top and stop at the first row that does what you need and fits your budget. If you fish offshore brush on a reservoir for bass, you need side imaging and charts, row four, before live sonar means anything.

The jump that matters most on this ladder is from row four to row five. Pay $600 more than a charted side-imaging HOOK Reveal 7, and the Eagle Eye swaps your SideScan for live sonar. No other maker sells you that step for less than about $2,400. The best fish finder page picks across all three makers by budget.

Is $999 live sonar enough?

Yes, if you’ve got an aluminum boat or a kayak and you want to watch a bass follow a jig this season. That’s who the Eagle Eye 9 is for, and it’s the unit that changed the Lowrance ladder. Lowrance bills it as the most accessible live-sonar fish finder in the world, and on price that holds up. One transducer gives you focused forward and down live views, plus CHIRP and DownScan with FishReveal, on a 9 in IPS screen. You get C-MAP charts for more than 17,000 US lakes ($999), or the wider DISCOVER OnBoard bundle ($1,049). There’s no black box, no second transducer and no module for you to buy.

The live views have the same resolution as ActiveTarget 2, Lowrance says, just in narrower forward and down windows. Bassmaster rates it an entry-level, complete live-sonar setup for under $1,000. It says that fits decked-out aluminum rigs, midsize fiberglass boats and kayaks.

Know what you give up. It won’t run ActiveTarget, because no Eagle can. You get four views, Live Forward, Live Down, CHIRP and DownScan, so there’s no SideScan. You don’t get the Scout overhead view either, and you can’t network it with a second screen. The live transducer is its own, so if you upgrade later, you’re buying a new display. The forward-facing sonar page sets it against the full systems and the tournament rules that now limit them.

Elite FS or HDS PRO, ActiveTarget 2 or 2 XL?

Buy the Elite FS unless you need two live transducers at once, or Active Imaging HD without a module. Only the HDS PRO gives you those. The Elite FS is a touchscreen in four sizes, 7 to 12 in, and you can network it with a second Elite FS or an HDS. It runs Active Imaging 3-in-1, ActiveTarget 2 and ActiveTarget 2 XL. Want Active Imaging HD, the 1.2 MHz imaging, on an Elite FS? You’ll need the S3100H sonar module.

The HDS PRO gives you the SolarMAX HD screen and Active Imaging HD without the module. Both run HALO radar and Lowrance’s Outboard Pilot autopilot. On both you control Ghost trolling motors and Power-Pole anchors from the touchscreen. The two-transducer live modes are HDS PRO only: Forward and Scout at once, and a front-to-back 180° view. Put on two ActiveTarget 2 XL transducers and you add Scout Live 360°, a view around the whole boat. Your cheapest way in is the HDS PRO 9 at $1,834.99 bare. The 16 in is $4,899.99 with its transducer.

ActiveTarget 2 is the transducer and module kit, $1,399.99 at Tackle Warehouse. It gives you Forward, Down and Scout views and mounts for the trolling motor shaft. ActiveTarget 2 XL widens each view to 180°: Forward XL, Down XL and Scout XL. It’s been listed since early 2026, and it was $1,849.99 at Tackle Warehouse in October 2026. It fits 27–33 mm trolling motor shafts, so measure yours before you buy. Both run on the Elite FS, HDS PRO, HDS LIVE and HDS Carbon. The 360° view needs an HDS PRO and two XL transducers.

Here’s what a working live-sonar setup really costs you.

If you hear that a $1,000 Elite FS 9 “runs live sonar,” that’s a third of the truth. The display is cheap. The kit isn’t. A working Lowrance setup lands you at $2,100–2,400. That’s level with Humminbird’s bundle at its cheapest, up to $500 under it, and about $500–800 under Garmin.

On the live picture, Garmin holds a slight edge over Humminbird. Outdoor Life’s Pete Robbins ran LiveScope Plus against the first MEGA Live in 2024, and called it close to a tie, Garmin just ahead. ActiveTarget 2 wasn’t in that test. So you buy Lowrance for the price and the Eagle Eye, not the picture.

The picks in detail

Eagle 5 SplitShot HD

Buy this one for a kayak, a jon boat or a first boat on a budget. At $357 you get CHIRP, DownScan, FishReveal, a worldwide basemap and Genesis Live on a 5 in IPS screen. With DISCOVER OnBoard charts it’s $409. It’s the entry unit with a chart in the box. A Garmin Striker Vivid can only draw its own Quickdraw contours and carries no chart. If you’ll want side imaging, skip it and go to the 7 in TripleShot HD at $609.99.

HOOK Reveal 7 TripleShot or Eagle 7 TripleShot HD

Start with the HOOK Reveal 7 TripleShot with US Inland charts, $399.99. You get CHIRP, DownScan, SideScan and lake maps on a keyed 7 in screen, the cheapest charted side-imaging unit Lowrance sells. The Eagle 7 TripleShot HD with DISCOVER OnBoard does the same with an IPS screen and the newer HD transducer, for $664.99. Buy the HOOK while it’s still listed. Buy the Eagle if the $265 matters less to you than the screen.

Eagle Eye 9 Live

It’s $999 with US Inland charts. Don’t buy it if you run two screens, or if you’ll mount an ActiveTarget transducer on the trolling motor next year. Then you want an Elite FS 9.

Elite FS 7

It’s the best overall kayak fish finder, says Outdoor Life in its guide last updated in April 2025. You get a 7 in touchscreen, Active Imaging 3-in-1, charts and ActiveTarget 2 readiness. It’s $969.99 with the transducer at Lowrance, and dealers often sell it for less. The catch on a kayak fish finder is your battery: it draws 2.0 A at 13 V with the backlight on full.

Elite FS 9

For a bass boat with room for one screen, this is your display. With the Active Imaging 3-in-1, it’s $1,119.99. You can add the ActiveTarget 2 kit later, for a working live-sonar boat at about $2,370. Lowrance’s $2,099 bundle is cheaper, but its listing names ActiveTarget, not ActiveTarget 2, so check which one you’re getting. Don’t buy it if you want Active Imaging HD without a module, two live transducers at once, or the 360° view. That’s HDS PRO.

HDS PRO 10

This is the console unit on a Lowrance tournament boat. Unless you run several screens or want two live transducers at once, the Elite FS 9 above does your job. At $2,449.99 with Active Imaging HD, you get the SolarMAX HD screen and every live mode up to Scout Live 360°. You also run the trolling motor and Power-Pole from the touchscreen. Above it sit the 12 in ($3,369.99) and the 16 in ($4,899.99).

Lowrance, Garmin or Humminbird?

If price matters most to you, pick Lowrance. It gets you to live sonar cheapest: the Eagle Eye 9 at $999, and the Elite FS at $2,100–2,400 with a kit. Garmin’s LiveScope had Outdoor Life’s slight edge on the live picture in that 2024 test of LiveScope Plus. Its successor, LiveScope 2, runs on the ECHOMAP sv models, from about $2,900 as a working setup. Humminbird’s MEGA imaging runs to 1.2 MHz, and every XPLORE comes with LakeMaster charts and their 1 ft contours. For its MEGA Live 2 you need an XPLORE, SOLIX G3 or APEX, from about $2,400 as a bundle.

Lowrance’s own strengths are FishReveal, the readiest screen if you’re a beginner, and C-MAP’s 1 ft contours on 15,000 to 19,000 US lakes, by model. The Garmin and Humminbird pages run the other two ladders.

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