It is a migratory offshore fish and undergoes a daily vertical migration from the surface to the seabed at depths down to about 1,000 m (3,300 ft).

It is the object of an important commercial fishery off the West Coast of the United States, and annual quotas are used to prevent overfishing.

Fisheries that target Pacific Hake typically deliver the fish to processing plants within several hours of being caught.

North Pacific hake are nocturnal feeders that undergo daily vertical migrations off the bottom to feed on a variety of fishes and invertebrates.

[3][4] In spring and summer, adults migrated northward to feed to as far as central Vancouver Island (and as far as Queen Charlotte Sound in some years).

[4] Resident Pacific hake in Puget Sound spawn in Port Susan and Dabob Bay from February through April.

The coast-wide (U.S. and Canada) Pacific hake stock is assessed annually by a joint technical team of scientists from both countries.

In 2003, the U.S. and Canada signed an agreement that allocates a set percentage of the Pacific hake catch to American and Canadian fishermen over the next decade, and established a process for the review of science and the development of management recommendations.

Beginning in late 2007, management of Pacific hake and related science activities was coordinated under the provisions of this international treaty with Canada.

The National Marine Fisheries Service received a petition to list the North Pacific hake under the ESA.