The Esociformes (/ˈiːsɒsɪfɔːrmiːz/) is a small order of freshwater ray-finned fish, with two families, Umbridae and Esocidae.

The esociform fishes first appeared in the mid-Cretaceous — early products of the Euteleostei radiation of that time.

The three extant esocid genera (Esox, Novumbra, and Dallia) together comprise a holarctic distribution.

[3] Umbra remains the only extant genus in this family, and can be found in eastern North America and Europe.

Three additional genera have been described from fossils dating from the Paleocene of Europe; however, genetic studies on the extant species of Umbra have recovered a split between the North American and European species dating to the Late Cretaceous and earliest half of the Paleogene.