Diamond jigs are very easy to use by experienced and inexperienced anglers, and they can come in many different sizes, colors, and with many different styles of hooks. They can be used to catch a wide variety of saltwater fish, such as king and spanish mackerel, bluefish, stripers, amberjack, cobia, drum, albacore, bonito, yellow tails, and shad. For nearshore and inshore fishing, the simplest way to use a diamond jig is from a structure, such as an ocean fishing pier or a bridge. First, let the jig drop all the way to the bottom, then jig up and down (allowing the jig to touch the bottom each time) until you either feel a strike or the line goes limp. You can vary the speed with which you raise and lower the jig until you find what is best for the fish in your area. If the line goes limp it is because the fish has taken the jig and has swam towards you and thus you wont feel the jig drop back to the bottom, this happens a lot so don't be surprised.

One technique many pier fishermen use, usually pier king mackerel fishing, is to create a 'gold hook jig' that is similar in style to the sabiki rig. It is a mono rig with 4-5 small (size 1 or less) gold J hooks, with a 1.5 or 2 oz. diamond jig on the bottom. This method is extremely useful, because if you aren't able to jig up any fish then you only need to put your bait (shrimp, sand fleas, squid, etc.) on the hooks for the other types of fish near the pier (spot, pompano, bluefish, pin fish).

From the surf the jig can be used in a similar manner, the only difference is that you will bounce the jig along the bottom, reeling up the slack as the jig falls back to the bottom each time. Casting diamond jigs is more difficult if they are lighter, so I would recommend not going any smaller than 2 ounces when casting jigs.