The black sea bass (Centropristis striata) is an exclusively marine fish. It is a type of grouper (Serranidae) found more commonly in northern than in southern ranges.

It inhabits the coasts from Maine to northeast Florida and the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The three large biomass populations of black sea bass are the mid-Atlantic stock, from Cape Cod in Massachusetts to Cape Hatteras in North Carolina, the South Atlantic stock, from Cape Hatteras to the southern tip of the Florida peninsula, and the Gulf of Mexico stock, from the southern tip of the Florida peninsula to Texas. They can be found in inshore waters (bays and sounds) and offshore in waters up to a depth of 130 m (430 ft). They spend most of their time close to the sea floor and often congregate around bottom formations such as rocks, man-made reefs, wrecks, jetties, piers, and bridge pilings.