A historical record of Maine’s landed lobster catch, dockside value, and average price per pound from 1950 through 2016.
For roughly four decades, Maine lobster landings remained near 20 million pounds annually. The recorded catch began trending upward around 1990, eventually reaching substantially higher levels.
Dockside value also rose in current dollars, influenced by both the larger catch and changing average price per pound. Results were not uniform along the coast: landings vary by location, including county, town, and individual port.
Values and prices are nominal figures as originally reported. The table is horizontally scrollable on small screens.
67 annual records · Pounds, dockside value, and average price
Updated presentation: 21 August 2026
| Year | Pounds | Pounds (millions) | Value | Price/lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 18,352,600 | 18.4 | $6,412,311 | $0.35 |
| 1951 | 20,759,500 | 20.8 | $7,214,107 | $0.35 |
| 1952 | 20,036,300 | 20.08 | $8,511,821 | $0.42 |
| 1953 | 22,300,300 | 22.388 | $8,411,229 | $0.38 |
| 1954 | 21,667,700 | 21.7 | $8,087,156 | $0.37 |
| 1955 | 22,718,100 | 22.7 | $8,716,012 | $0.38 |
| 1956 | 20,572,300 | 20.6 | $9,119,807 | $0.44 |
| 1957 | 24,402,800 | 24.4 | $8,954,234 | $0.37 |
| 1958 | 21,312,000 | 21.3 | $10,445,004 | $0.49 |
| 1959 | 22,328,800 | 22.3 | $11,252,686 | $0.50 |
| 1960 | 24,014,200 | 24.0 | $10,967,018 | $0.46 |
| 1961 | 20,917,900 | 20.9 | $11,119,803 | $0.53 |
| 1962 | 22,075,300 | 22.1 | $11,195,609 | $0.51 |
| 1963 | 22,804,300 | 22.8 | $12,635,826 | $0.55 |
| 1964 | 20,920,697 | 20.9 | $13,878,286 | $0.66 |
| 1965 | 18,861,785 | 18.9 | $14,177,204 | $0.75 |
| 1966 | 19,915,816 | 19.9 | $14,904,498 | $0.75 |
| 1967 | 16,489,196 | 16.5 | $13,597,869 | $0.82 |
| 1968 | 20,501,732 | 20.5 | $14,931,671 | $0.73 |
| 1969 | 19,834,780 | 19.8 | $16,046,829 | $0.81 |
| 1970 | 18,172,269 | 18.2 | $17,201,501 | $0.95 |
| 1971 | 17,558,351 | 17.6 | $17,481,291 | $1.00 |
| 1972 | 16,256,467 | 16.3 | $18,587,455 | $1.14 |
| 1973 | 17,044,194 | 17.0 | $23,269,859 | $1.37 |
| 1974 | 16,457,666 | 16.5 | $23,212,808 | $1.41 |
| 1975 | 16,515,588 | 16.5 | $26,520,134 | $1.61 |
| 1976 | 19,001,053 | 19.0 | $29,238,371 | $1.54 |
| 1977 | 18,487,138 | 18.5 | $32,101,423 | $1.74 |
| 1978 | 19,130,459 | 19.1 | $33,878,376 | $1.77 |
| 1979 | 22,133,235 | 22.1 | $39,900,632 | $1.80 |
| 1980 | 21,986,894 | 21.9 | $41,729,114 | $1.90 |
| 1981 | 22,631,614 | 22.6 | $47,236,923 | $2.09 |
| 1982 | 22,730,253 | 22.7 | $50,343,596 | $2.21 |
| 1983 | 21,976,555 | 22.0 | $51,234,291 | $2.33 |
| 1984 | 19,545,682 | 19.5 | $49,298,135 | $2.52 |
| 1985 | 20,125,177 | 20.1 | $45,035,558 | $2.24 |
| 1986 | 19,704,317 | 19.7 | $46,171,224 | $2.34 |
| 1987 | 19,747,766 | 19.7 | $54,548,137 | $2.76 |
| 1988 | 21,739,067 | 21.7 | $60,742,438 | $2.79 |
| 1989 | 23,368,719 | 23.4 | $59,552,211 | $2.55 |
| 1990 | 28,068,238 | 28.1 | $61,627,973 | $2.20 |
| 1991 | 30,788,646 | 30.8 | $72,265,347 | $2.35 |
| 1992 | 26,830,448 | 26.8 | $71,822,699 | $2.68 |
| 1993 | 29,926,464 | 29.9 | $73,863,438 | $2.47 |
| 1994 | 38,948,867 | 38.9 | $100,936,678 | $2.59 |
| 1995 | 37,208,324 | 37.2 | $101,893,173 | $2.74 |
| 1996 | 36,083,443 | 36.1 | $106,980,557 | $2.96 |
| 1997 | 47,023,271 | 47.0 | $138,292,438 | $2.94 |
| 1998 | 47,036,836 | 47.0 | $137,189,341 | $2.92 |
| 1999 | 53,494,418 | 53.5 | $184,614,071 | $3.45 |
| 2000 | 57,215,406 | 57.2 | $187,714,817 | $3.28 |
| 2001 | 48,617,693 | 48.6 | $153,982,266 | $3.17 |
| 2002 | 63,625,745 | 63.6 | $210,950,030 | $3.32 |
| 2003 | 54,970,948 | 55.0 | $205,715,329 | $3.74 |
| 2004 | 71,574,344 | 71.6 | $289,078,847 | $4.04 |
| 2005 | 68,729,861 | 68.7 | $317,948,336 | $4.63 |
| 2006 | 75,416,341 | 75.4 | $305,703,938 | $4.05 |
| 2007 | 63,981,361 | 66.0 | $280,678,206 | $4.39 |
| 2008 | 69,908,504 | 70.0 | $245,150,026 | $3.51 |
| 2009 | 81,174,638 | 81.2 | $237,536,890 | $2.93 |
| 2010 | 96,208,772 | 96.2 | $318,052,441 | $3.31 |
| 2011 | 104,924,728 | 105.0 | $334,539,734 | $3.19 |
| 2012 | 127,321,422 | 127.3 | $342,079,520 | $2.69 |
| 2013 | 127,808,436 | 127.8 | $370,380,982 | $2.90 |
| 2014 | 124,325,923 | 124.3 | $459,508,386 | $3.70 |
| 2015 | 122,443,246 | 122.4 | $501,336,480 | $4.09 |
| 2016 | 130,844,773 | 130.8 | $533,094,366 | $4.07 |
Changes in collection requirements affect comparisons across the full historical series.
The landings for 2002 and 2003 may partly reflect increased efforts by the state marine-resources department to collect voluntary reports from some lobster dealers. Comparisons with earlier years should therefore be made cautiously.
Reporting became mandatory in 2004 for Maine dealers purchasing directly from harvesters. That procedural change is another reason to use care when comparing later landings with previous years.
Definitions and cautions for interpreting the historical table.
Landings are the recorded catch brought ashore and reported through the commercial fishery. They describe harvested weight, not a direct count of lobsters in the sea.
No. The values shown are current-dollar or nominal figures for each listed year, so direct comparisons across decades do not account for changing purchasing power.
The exact pounds column preserves the reported total, while the millions column provides a quicker way to see the scale and long-term pattern.
Collection efforts increased in 2002 and 2003, followed by mandatory reporting for relevant dealers in 2004. Those changes may affect comparability with earlier records.
No. Total value reflects both the quantity landed and the average price per pound. Either factor can raise or lower annual value.
No. The preserved historical series on this page ends in 2016; the presentation date does not extend the underlying dataset.
Move from this fisheries record to another Maine subject through the alphabetical index.