ECL197F in 7/0 is about the best jugline hook there is. They are cheap for large quantities and very effective for big and small catfish. Not my preference for rod and reel but hard to beat on juglines.

If you don't want to use circles use a 3/0 or 4/0 Kahle hook.

These are both the hooks I have offered with juglines for years at www.jugfishing.net

7/0 Mustad

Well, I did some experimenting this past weekend with several different hook sizes and types. Circle hooks of almost any size outperformed offset shanks and wide gap bait hooks, and not by just a little. Not only did they perform better but they are much less likely to snag your hands or part of the boat. Thanks for all the input, but bases on my results, and the safety of circle hooks, I think I'll stick with them. As for the size, the only guideline I found is that you need a hook big enough for your bait and if you want to catch the big ones you have to have big hooks.

what kind of cats?
I find that J hooks work better for yellow's...

When you use a jug line, do you tie the jug to a tree or limb, or do you just let it free float?