I was wondering what's the difference between using night crawlers and another type of worm like an earthworm. I've found earthworms easy to access, and free but don't if its worth digging them up.

Thanks

The biggest thing I can tell is the size.  Maybe the fish can tell the difference in taste

the nightcrawlers are usually much bigger.  other than that, not sure that there's any other difference.  I don't bother with them, because there's so many sunny and perch that every cast you'll be pulling them in, literally.  they're great for my little brother or for anyone that doesn't have the patience to go after bass (like the gf's lol) but in my lake the only thing they're good for is sunny.  which often fight more than the big fish!

Thanks for the suggestions guys, I was thinking the size mught make a difference.

It might just be a matter of semantics but around here, nightcrawlers and earthworms are the same thing-the kind of worm you find wriggling around on the sidewalks after a good rain.  Garden worms are the smaller, pinker worms you usually have to dig up.  In my opinion, garden worms are much better bait for sunfish (brim).  I've seen times where sunfish will completely ignore nightcrawlers but gobble up garden worms.

There is a huge difference here. The worms that are dug up are smaller and leaner. (More muscular and firm if that makes sense.) The night crawlers in stores are called Canadian Night Crawlers and they are bigger and fatter. The garden worms tense up and break easier when they are hooked. I find the night crawlers easier to use.

Around where I am at, I have had very little success with nightcrawlers.  I usually end up getting rid of most of them.  Wigglers, or pan-fish worms (probably the same thing) are a different story.   They are much smaller and the name (wigglers) says it all about them.  Brim, catfish, crappie gobble them up but for some reason hardly anyone carries them here.  Wally world only carries the canadian nightcrawlers.