We take a look at some of the best cheap carp bait available and where to buy it from.
Carp fishing is a passion for most of us and that passion can burn a pretty big hole in our pockets. Bait is the one thing we can not do without, it’s probably the biggest annual expense for most carp anglers. With leading boilie brands costing around £11 per kilo, it’s easy to see how the costs can spiral out of control over the course of a season.
In this article, we explore some of the best cheap carp bait available and look at where you can purchase it from. Cutting the cost of your carp bait and looking at cheaper alternatives can also help you land a few more fish as wary carp have become accustomed to seeing the same baits over and over on pressured waters.
Particles & pellets are a proven cheap carp bait
Particles have been catching carp for decades, hemp, maize and tiger nuts have accounted for some of the biggest carp ever caught. Previously, preparing particles yourself involved soaking and boiling baits. Not only was this time-consuming but it required extra space in your house for storage. Thankfully, many suppliers now offer a ready-prepared particle service delivered directly to your door. They offer some of the best readily available cheap carp bait on the market today.

My favourite mix is a combination of Hemp, Maize, Maples, Red Dari, Whole Tigernuts, Black Rapeseed, Crushed Peanuts, White peas, Groats and Sweetcorn. It’s perfect for spodding and heavy baiting of areas. I always have a few KG of this in my freezer and have caught from everywhere I’ve used it.
Starmer cheap carp boilies
Boilies are the staple choice for most carp anglers. Frozen baits from the likes of Mainline, Sticky Baits, Dynamite and CC Moore are some of the most popular boilies on the market today, but they are also the most expensive. Even when bought in bulk these baits can still cost £8-11 a kilo.
There are alternative cheap carp baits from lesser-known brands such as Starmer. Starmer Baits are one of the oldest boilie manufacturers in the UK. They have been making baits since 1986 and their boilies have landed uncountable carp from across the continent.
Combine these boilies with the particle mixes above to get a varied selection of cheap carp baits that will catch fish from any venue.
Starmer Baits also offer a range of matching pellets, mixes, glugs and liquids.

Their boilies come in a variety of flavours including;
Caribbean, milk protein.
Tangerine & peach, milk protein.
Raspberry ripple, milk protein.
Tutti fruitti, milk protein.
White chocolate, milk protein.
Honey nut, sweet birdseed.
Strawberry cream, sweet birdseed.
Tiger nut & maple, sweet birdseed.
Tigerfish, sweet birdseed.
Coconut cream, fishmeal & betaine.
Garlic sausage, fishmeal & betaine.
Halibut & tuna, fishmeal & betaine.
Monster squid, fishmeal & betaine.
Bio c.p.2 amino, green lip mussel.
Bloodworm & tuna, green lip mussel.
Green lip mussel, green lip mussel.
Sweet plum seed, green lip mussel.
You can buy a 5KG bag of fresh ready-made boilies with free shipping for just £35.
They also offer a fantastic “cut-offs” package deal which is perfect for combining with spod mixes. This 5kg deal of mixed flavours & colours includes off-cuts and overruns from their boilie range. No need to freeze either as these cut-offs are supplied in 1 x 5kg bags. Priced at just £23.50 with free shipping. These are fantastic value cheap carp baits.
Vitalin Original is a great cheap carp bait
Vitalin is nutritionally balanced dog food which comes in a traditional muesli style that is ideal for soaking and using as ground bait or adding to spod mixes. People have been using Vitalin for years and it was popular in the big carp scene in the early 90s thanks to its cheap price and ease of use.

Simply soak overnight with boiling water, and play around with different levels of water to suit your needs. You can either make a sloppy, cloudy mixture or a firmer mixture with less water that is perfect for making into balls and catapulting out. I suggest mixing Vitalin with a particle mixture such as the Monster Mix to bulk it out. I also add crushed and whole boilies to my Vitalin mixes to produce high-quality cheap carp bait.
Buy a 15kg dry bag for just £26 which will produce around 30kg of finished bait. That’s less than £1 per kilo!
Pigeon Conditioner
Pigeon conditioner with aniseed (also known as Red Band) is a fantastic cheap carp bait which can prompt frenzied feeding at the right time of year. Cheap to buy and simple to prepare, pigeon conditioner can be brought from most decent pet shops and is readily available in bulk bags online.

Watch the video below on how to prepare pigeon conditioners for fishing.
20Kg dry pigeon conditioner with aniseed can be purchased for around £25.00 from Amazon, this will give you around 40kg of prepared bait once cooked.
Mix this up with Vitalin or particle mix to create a bulk spod mix that is loaded with flavours that the carp cannot resist.
Bread crumb stick mixes
One of my favourite tactics and an awesome cheap carp bait is bread crumb mixes. Simply use a food blender to blend a couple of loaves of cheap white bread.

Add in a couple of handfuls of boilies into the blender or use a Korda Krusha and then add a few drops of stinky fish oils such as The Krill Liquid.
This mix is perfect for stick mixes and creates a cloud of irresistible attraction that the carp love. It’s cheap and easy to prepare and can help instantly improve your catch rate.