Fish is too expensive to buy by the can and I can’t freeze large portions of fish itself so what are some good store bought mink baits that are cheap?

Fish is the best!

Minnow trap and seine.

Canned jack mackerel is pretty cheap. Check the dollar stores.

How much sets will one can make me?

Probably 6-10

Dang well I might need to look at the dollar tree

Carp, carp and carp.

Best mink trappers I knew of used 100% blind sets.

Best bait is a bridge wall with 1 foothold and 1 bottom edge in deeper water. Toss the bait.

Alrighty thanks for the input guys

^^ I freeze all my fish cleaning carcasses for this purpose through out the year.

I did well on mink one year off of one purchased bag of fresh frozen smelt. I could get a 3 pound bag at local HyVee grocery store in freezer section in fish section. The smelt were all about 4” to 5” long like big minnows and it was a full bag. That made a lot of mink sets for a pretty reasonable price.
I saw the same size bag for sale last week so still probably a viable bait source if looking around a store.
A large bag like that just take out only what you need for setting and keep rest in freezer. Then as you check daily take a handful in a sandwich bag with you for remakes. At end of day after checking out them back in freezer.
Jim

Location is EVERYTHING TrapperE. If you're on location you can just blind set or attract with just a hole in bank or brush

X2

Snares work well if legal, conibear also

So if I just made a really attractive looking hole and threw some feathers or fur on the outside and in a mink will wander In there if he’s around?

Muskrat is the best Bait we've found and it's cheap.

When you catch one skin it and cut it in half and use for bait.
Mink can't resist it.

It's the right price too.

A mink will ravage a muskrat population once they find it and you'll catch em on the rat carcasses you trap.

Good Luck.