I've been reading fishing forums since last night, and there are so many different opinions that I'm starting to get anxiety trying to figure out my first setup.

Yesterday was my first time ever fishing, and I absolutely loved it. I'm in New Jersey, and for now I'll mostly be fishing from piers where I can target fluke, bluefish, and whatever else is around. As I get more experience, I'd like to start fishing from boats and eventually target striped bass.

Yesterday we caught bluefish, but the rest were all snappers, which were surprisingly delicious fried.

From everything I've read, a lot of people recommend a 6'6" or 7' Ugly Stik GX2 Medium with 20 lb braided line because it seems versatile enough to handle just about anything I'll realistically catch. My question is: would that setup be overkill if, if for the time being, I'm mostly catching snappers from the pier until I move on to boat fishing?

Would it make more sense to buy a cheaper 6' Light rod/reel combo with 10 lb braid for pier fishing now, then later buy a 6'6" Medium GX2 with 20 lb braid when I move on to boat fishing? Or should I just buy the Medium GX2 now with 20 lb braid and use it for everything? I don't want to use lead mono since I'm just a beginner.

One thing I do know is that the 6' rod I borrowed from my friend felt perfect for pier fishing. I really liked the length and wouldn't want to go any longer.

I'm probably overthinking this, but as a complete beginner, the endless recommendations have me second guessing everything. I'd really appreciate hearing what you would do if you were starting from scratch.

When you get to be proficient a longer rod will cast further. A GX2 with 20 lb line sounds perfect. Enjoy your adventure.

I've never pier fished but if there are people around you, then a 6 footer is better than a 7 footer. How big are the fish? Does the rod have to lift the fish? Unless the fish are quite small, you might want to consider going in the other direction. A more powerful rod. It all depends on your circumstances.