The Essential Fly Reviews

4.8 Rating 2,251 Reviews

97 %

of reviewers recommend The Essential Fly

4.8

Based on 2,251 reviews

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Postal Service
Average Delivery Time	Within 5 Days
On-time Delivery	Greater than 90%
Accurate And Undamaged Orders	98%
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Telephone, Email, Live Chat
Queries Resolved In	Under An Hour
Customer Service	4.9 out of 5

About The Essential Fly:

Specialists in Fly Fishing with salmon, trout flies, and flies for lots of other species. We sell Fly Fishing Tackle and gear and a huge range of Fly Tying Materials and Tools - The Essential Fly is a leading supplier of gear for fly fishermen, rainbow & brown trout flies, salmon flies and flies for every species from our massive selection. Fly tying materials and tools to satisfy every fly tyers needs. With tackle from Greys to Wychwood, from fly rods to waders, luggage and all of the accessories you will need.

We have won awards for customer service and believe in value and quality. Check our reviews from thousands of customers all around the world. Having delivered to over 50 countries from homes to fishing lodges for that last minute requirement.

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The Essential Fly 5 star review on 16th February 2025

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Filter: Rated 3 None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“Although the quality of the fly tying seems to be good. They didn’t have all the flys that I had chosen and therefore had to refund me. It also took a long time for the package to be dispatched.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 weeks ago

Hi and thank you very much for your recent order and review. We carry massive stocks of flies and other fly fishing/tying goods. However for some items, we bring them in specially for customers and we can see that one of the items you ordered (Calendonian flies Green Peter Sedge) was a special order. Unfortunately on this occasion, the distributor did not have them in hence us refunding them we are sorry. This caused the delay for which we apologise. We do hope that your remaining flies are ones that will bring you much success and pleasure! Best wishes Team TEF

Posted 4 weeks ago

“The materials ordered were out of stock and eventually arrived 3 weeks later. It was made clear that they were out and would be delivered when new stock came in. The impression I had from the website was that stock arrived weekly, so the wait was much longer than anticipated. While this is not The Essental Fly's problem, I would have appreciated being informed that there would be an extended wait and if possible an ETA. Outside of this, the materials are exaclty as advertised and I am very happy with them.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 month ago

“Flies are very good quality and priced fairly. Delivery is very poor, ordered 14th April and received 6th May. All flies ordered were showing in stock on the online shop and shipping was £3.95 Royal Mail, hence only 3 stars. Ordered well in advance if you have a trip arranged, I'll probably stick to my local shop in future.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 month ago

Hello Mr McKenna and thank you for your recent order. We are very sorry to read that you were not happy with the delivery time on your order. We would like to take this opportunity to discuss this please. The flies you ordered were not all in stock at the time, some were special order items. This is shown against each fly and also in the check out. This meant that we brought them in especially for you that incurred a slight delay. We are always available on the phone or via email if you would ever like to check stock availability. We would of course be happy to run through with you the flies that are immediately available for a prompt dispatch and make any suggestions for alternatives if appropriate. Please do make a note of our number 01757 333003 or use customerservices@theessentialfly.com. If you are planning a special event, we totally understand the importance of this and would welcome an opportunity to discuss your requirements with you to make sure you have your flies in plenty of time. We do hope we will get an opportunity to help you with your flies again in the future With very best wishes Team TEF

Posted 1 month ago

“Très belles gammares (mais très chères aussi!!!) Gros inconvénient ! commandées le 26 septembre et reçues le 11 octobre ,très long.”

Helpful Report

Posted 8 months ago

Hi and thank you for your recent order of flies. Having helped you via your messaging on this particular premium range, we are glad you like them. With regards to the shipment, you placed your order at the end of the week and we shipped them to you after the weekend on our first day back in the warehouse. These have been sent to you in your country using an international tracked postage service and you should have the tracking number in your dispatch email. We can see on the tracking that your delivery has been released from customs so we hope it will be with you very soon and you can soon enjoy fishing with these beautiful flies. Thank you and tight lines Team TEF

Posted 8 months ago

“Pretty poor that I waited over a week to be told their supplier didn’t have some of my order in stock. Probably won’t buy from you again because of this procedure.”

Helpful Report

Posted 9 months ago

Hello and thank you very much for your recent order and feedback. We would like to take this opportunity to respond please to your comment regarding unavailable items. The items you are reffering to being out of stock were special order as shown on the site at time of order and in your basket at check out. As explained in our terms, we do rely on these special order suppliers to communicate with us to let us know their availability. Unfortunately on this occasion the supplier did not have it and we processed your order as soon as possible. Please be assured that we do carry massive stocks here and if ever you would like to check on any stock availability before ordering, you are more than welcome to get in touch via the phone or email. Our customer service team are really helpful and friendly and will do their very best for you. We do hope you will shop with us again. Thank you sincerely Team TEF

Posted 9 months ago

“I have used EF off and on for some years and found their flies to be good quality. I was pleased when they started a barbless collection but recently disappointed to find their barbless selection (esp., buzzers, crunchers and PTN) has become a bit limited. I hope the barbless selection will expand soon.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

Hi Mr Burridge and thank you for your custom, we appreciate being able to supply you with your flies. With regards to barbless ranges, we do have dedicated departments for these. Here are a few for you https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-buzzers.html https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-cruncher-nymph-flies.html https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-diawl-bach-nymph-flies.html https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-pheasant-tail-nymph-flies-ptn.html https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-traditional-nymph-flies.html https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-lure-streamer.html https://www.theessentialfly.com/barbless-gold-ribbed-hares-ear-nymph-flies-grhe.html We hope you find these links helpful and of course that the flies are to your liking! If we can ever be of any help to you please do get in touch via email or phone, our team are on hand! Thank you Team TEF

Posted 1 year ago

“the items ordered took a long time to arrive because they were waiting for a delivery to arrive before they could complete the order. when i received the goods one item was missing, i did receive a refund for missing item. it would have been better if they had told me when ordering, what items they had in stock.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

Hi Mr Raybone and thank you for your recent order and your feedback today. We have looked into your query and would like to respond please. When you ordered in December, it was just a couple of days before we and our suppliers closed for the Christmas break. Out of the items you ordered, 3 were special order items which is shown on each of the items and is confirmed in the check out also. The normal delivery timescales for bringing in special order items was unfortunately affected by the extended Christmas and New year break. But as soon as we were back and our suppliers open, we chased these up for you and once they came in we shipped them to you immediately. We are reliant on the manufacturers having stock available and were equally sorry to hear that one of your items was not in stock at the suppliers after all. This was unfortunately out of our hands. If ever you would like to check on stock availability or perhaps consider alternative brands that are more easily available we are more than happy to help you via email or the phone. This is a service we offer with pleasure. If you need advice from our in house tyers and anglers, these people are on hand too. We thank you again for your custom and please be assured we will always do our best for you. Kind regards Team TEF

Posted 1 year ago

“Great product range and prompt service with sensible free delivery level. Mildly frustrating habit of cancelling unavailable items rather than offering a substitution from their large range.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

“Unfortunately 2 of the items I ordered were out of stock and had to be refunded, To be honest it would be easier if these were updated on site save time and hassle of trying to reorder, Good selection of materials on site but how many in stock???”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

“Not your usual standard for the Veniard partridge feathers. Too much fluff and not enough barred feathers.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

“Ordered 6 small items. On day 9 and 10 after ordering, was refunded for 2 items that were presumably unavailable which I thought was a little bit late notice. Of the 4 items delivered one pack of foam cylinders was the wrong size. E fly normally good, not this time unfortunately.”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

“I still haven't received anything after receiving post”

Helpful Report

Posted 1 year ago

“I did not receive the package and I do not have a tracking number”

Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

Hello, I am sorry to hear you have not yet received your order. It was despatched from us on 17.4.23 The Tracking Number is UH613715387GB International deliveries do take longer than UK Domestic I'm sure it will be with you shortly. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Kindest Regards The Essential Fly

Posted 2 years ago

“Shipment to Germany arrived we massive delay (> 1 month). I was asked to pay additional fees for customs clearance (13 EUR). As customer service wasn’t able to assist in a timely manner I had to return my order.”

Helpful Report

Posted 2 years ago

“Good quick service in the current situation flies were larger than anticipated but hook sizes do vary. Will give them another try in the future.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Delivery not so quick as items out of stock and one item cancelled as it does not appear they can obtain despite offering for sale. Always difficult buying online when you can't see the product and feathers perhaps a bit smaller than I'd hoped. When selling online, descriptions need to provide fullest info possible. Essential fly not alone in this issue and I have found online shopping for fly tying materials to be very hit and miss between expectation from description given and actual product received.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

Hello and thank you for your review. We are sorry that you have not found our service on this occasion to your satisfaction. However, as explained by our customer services team on their email to you, for this order there were extenuating circumstances. The majority of the items you ordered were special order items ie we bring them in especially for you. This SPO status is shown clearly on each product and also in the check out. It is also explained in the terms and conditions. We do carry a large stock of fly tying materials but this special order system is available as an extra service which a lot of our customers find very helpful. We ordered them in from Veniard as they are the suppliers of the products. Veniard had only just opened up having closed down completely for lockdown. They had a massive amount of back orders and were unfortunately slower at dispatching orders than normal due to high volumes and limited resources due to the Covid19 restrictions. When Veniard sent us your order, they did not have available all the Fulling Mill hooks. We are sorry about this, sincerely. But unfortunately this was out of our control. We do try our very best for our customers and especially during the pandemic with all the restrictions and demand. We genuinely hope we will be able to help you with any future tying requirements and invite you to get in touch directly if you would like to check on any product availability or general information. With kind regards Team TEF

Posted 5 years ago

“A little disappointed I'm afraid. It took four days for the order to be completed and a further four days for it to arrive. I realise we are living in strange times, but other fly tying orders I have placed with other companies have arrived in half the time.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

We are sorry to hear you are disappointed. We would like to take this opportunity to explain and hopefully reassure you. Three of the items you ordered were in stock and available for immediate dispatch. However the three packs of hooks you ordered were special order items. This means we order them in especially for you from the manufacturer or distributor. We carry very large stocks of products but for some items, we order them in especially. During the pandemic, hooks have been in very short supply but we were pleased that we were able to get these in for you. Our site does show against each item whether it is an in stock item or a special order and this is shown again for clarification in the check out. Even with your SPO items, your order was dispatched within 3 working days using a first class Royal Mail tracked service. Royal Mail are dealing with huge volumes of deliveries during the crisis and its unfortunate that some deliveries are taking longer to arrive than normal just now. If ever there is anything we can help you with or if you would like to check on stock availability please do not hesitate to get in touch with us directly. We are always happy to help. We sincerely hope you are enjoying your tying materials. With kind regards Team TEF

Posted 5 years ago

“Good Afternoon Gentlemen, I have yet to receive the satchel I ordered back on the 24th of April (#PO100877). I will gladly respond to your feedback request following it's arrival. Thank you, Cole E Theander”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

Hello Mr Theander. Your special order satchel was dispatched from us on 29th April on a first class airmail service to you in the States using a tracked service. I hope you have seen the tracking number in your account (if you need this please get in touch directly so we can privately share this with you - customerservices@theessentialfly.com). We are aware that deliveries are taking longer than normal to arrive unfortunately due to the very high volumes but we sincerely hope it will be with you very soon. If you need any further help, our customer services team on the above email address will be happy to help you. Thank you Team TEF

Posted 5 years ago

“Generally very good flies. However I recently ordered some suspender buzzers and was disappointed to find the foam was not the circular ball I am used to, but cut out of a flat piece and roughly shaped. The problem with this is that the foan can act as a propeller, putting multiple twists into the leader. This makes fishing them very frustrating. Suspenders with the ball foam enclosed in mesh do not suffer from this problem. Gordon”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

“Good work on fly delivery keeps Hope up”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

Thank you for your kind feedback. We appreciate this very much. We are grateful to you for your custom. If there was anything further we could have done to help you please do let us know. Thank you Team TEF

Posted 5 years ago

The Essential Fly is rated 4.8 based on 2,251 reviews