What are the pros and cons of using a trolling motor vs. outboard?
Trolling motor or outboard for canoe, inflatable, and fishing, which one to choose?
Upgrading to an outboard doesn’t necessarily give you faster speed (although with higher horsepower for sure) and using the trolling motor also has its advantages.
Read the following critical differences and make a choice of trolling motor vs outboard motor that suits you best.
Table of content:
- What’s a Trolling Motor and Outboard Motor
- Trolling Motor vs Outboard: A Comprehensive Comparison
- Trolling Motor vs Small Outboard, Which One to Choose
What’s a Trolling Motor and Outboard Motor
Before we compare trolling motor vs outboard in details, let’s have a clear definition to both so that we are on the same page for the discussion.
A trolling motor is a small electric motor, located on the bow, stern or engine, working as auxiliary power for low-speed trolling (usually 5 mph max). It’s usually used for moving a fishing boat through the water quietly, to avoid spooking the fish.
An outboard motor, by contrast, is an electric or gas motor, located on the stern, working as the primary power or backup (known as kicker motor) for the inflatable, dinghy, tender, or sailboat. It has larger dynamic horsepower and much higher speed.
Note that here we are talking about the electric outboard vs trolling motor. So they are both electric powered and thus quiet, and will not scare fish.
In this post, we will focus on the most essential differences between a trolling motor vs outboard motor. You may also check out our previous post: Electric vs Gas Boat Motor: Which One Is Better
Trolling Motor vs Outboard: A Comprehensive Comparison
So what’s the difference between the trolling motor and the outboard motor?
Trolling motor is not an outboard, and each serve different purposes. It could be easy to choose between trolling motor vs small outboard with this comprehensive compression.
#1. Bow Mount Availability
The most obvious difference of trolling motor vs small outboard is that the trolling motor can be installed on the bow with a bow mount. It provides better boat control and positioning when compared with the transom mount (the way an outboard is mounted).
It is much easier to pull a boat than to push a boat. Boats do not tend to go in a straight line, and bow-mount trolling motor makes steering more precise than the stern-mounted outboard.
If you are looking for quick-response boat control and positioning or just want a bow mounting motor, the trolling motor is your best option.
#2. Power
2hp/2.5hp/3hp outboard vs trolling motor, is there any significant power difference?
Trolling motors are rated in pounds of thrust.
So you might wonder how much hp is a trolling motor, like how many horsepower is 50 lbs of thrust?
As a rule of thumb, 72 to 75lb. of thrust roughly equals one horsepower or 746W of electrical power. So the commonly seen 50 lbs of thrust roughly equals to 0.67hp.
The largest electric trolling motor has about 112 lbs. (37amps at 36 volts), which about 1.5 hp. This presumes 100% efficiency for the motor which is impossible. So even the smallest outboard motor (2hp/3.5hp/5hp) has larger power than trolling motor.
#3. Speed
Compared with trolling motors, outboard motors go faster with larger dynamic horsepower.
But hold on if you want to switch to higher trolling motors just for higher speed! It’s not exactly true that the more pounds of thrust, the faster the boat will go.
When deciding what size trolling motor you need for your boat to get maximum speed, horsepower and prop pitch should be taken into consideration.
It is with much higher horsepower and specially designed prop pitch, the outboard motor can reach higher speeds compared with the trolling motor.
However with the same prop pitch (same RMP), the trolling motor has a same top speed. And once you have enough thrust for your boat, the adding power won’t make the boat go any faster (but it can power a heavier boat and that’s where the added thrust comes into play).
#4. Purposes
Generally speaking, the trolling motor is used as auxiliary power for its slow speed and limited runtime. It does a great job for short distance trolling.
Oftentimes you’ll see it installed with a large horsepower outboard motor which serves as its primary power. That’s because the larger horsepower outboard isn’t going to operate as efficiently as the electric trolling motors.
However the small outboard can be used as the primary power to propel small boats. For example, the 3hp outboard motor can power a 10 feet inflatable, dinghy, tender boat, and even 24 feet sailboat.
#5. Battery Monitoring
With a trolling motor, you will never know how much juice you have left unless you get a meter which cost extra. Newbie boaters could get anxious about what to do when the battery runs dry.
The advantage of outboard vs trolling motor is that you can easily read real time power in watt, remaining runtime to the accuracy of minute, and voltage from its built-in display.
#6. Setup
It’s extremely easy to set up the outboard motor. The package comes with everything you need for a plug-and-play setup.
However the trolling motor setup isn’t that easy. Generally you need some accessories to finish the whole process.
For example, batteries from another brand. You will need to figure out whether to go with deep charge battery or starting ones, AGM or Gel ones, and flooded or sealed ones. And you may need a battery charger on board if you don’t want to lift out the battery to recharge.
#7. Weight
By using the compact and lightweight lithium battery, the outboard motor reduces the battery weight greatly. A 1018 Wh battery for outboard motor weighs only 19 lbs.
That’s not the case with trolling motor. It uses the lead-acid battery with only 1/4 energy density as the lithium battery. Also, keep in mind that if you have a larger 24V trolling motor, you will need 2 pieces of 12V batteries connected in series to get 24V power.
It could be even lighter with the gas outboard vs trolling motor. Usually the whole gas outboard set with a two-gallon aux. tank is around 40 lbs.
Trolling Motor vs Small Outboard, Which One Should You Choose
So electric trolling motor vs outboard, which one is best for your boat?
Actually it depends on your intended use, including the size of your boat and the boating environment.
If you are using it as a shore-based tender to get to a boat moored offshore, or fishing in a small lake, or if you usually row the boat and want a motor for occasional use only, the electric trolling motor will be cheaper, lighter, easier to maintain, and quieter.
However if you’re going to be fishing in a large lake or you plan on a long-distance cruising, you’d better purchase the outboard motor and it will be much more efficient.