Norwegian smoked salmon or røkelaks is one of the most popular smoked salmon varieties. It is usually made with farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), and it stands out for its quality, bright pink color, and tender and flaky flesh.

The flavor and the aroma are mild and have a distinctive, subtly smoky note. Before smoking, the salmon can undergo wet or dry curing, while the smoking process can be hot or cold, the latter being prevalent these days. Beech or other wood chips can be added during smoking.

Pacific smoked salmon is a broad category of salmon that's usually found in the Pacific Ocean, most commonly Alaska and Canada. Some of the most popular Pacific smoked salmon varieties include: Chum (or dog salmon), the least common variety; Canadian King Salmon, with ivory white to deep red flesh; Sockeye or red salmon, with a bright and deep red-orange flesh, Pink or humpback, the smallest and most common type, and Coho or silver salmon, with red flesh.

Alaskan smoked salmon is a type of wild salmon that can be found in the cold waters just off Alaska. This variety belongs to the group of Pacific smoked salmon. It's usually hot-smoked using traditional Native American techniques. The texture of the flesh is usually silky or firm, but it can depend on the brine that was used for wet-curing the fish.

Nova is a term that's usually used to refer to a salty, wet-cured, lightly smoked farmed salmon. The brine is often a mixture of salt, sugar, and water. The fish spends a few days in the brine before it's cold-smoked. During the days spent in brine, the salmon excretes some of its oils and absorbs the sugar and salt, resulting in great flavor and firmness of the flesh.

Smoked Scottish salmon can be produced from wild and farm-raised salmons that fall into the category of Atlantic salmons (Salmo salar). The fish is typically cold-smoked and dry-cured, usually with salt, sugar, or spices. Smoked Scottish salmon will have orange-pink color, tender but firm flesh, and mild flavor and aroma.

Atlantic smoked salmon is a broad category that can include numerous types of smoked salmon found in the Eastern Seaboard of North America and in Northern Europe. The salmon has a rich and buttery flavor and it's cured and cold-smoked by using artisanal methods.

Arbroath smokie is a fresh haddock fish that has been hot-smoked over an open fire, headless and gutted in Arbroath using the traditional, unique methods of preparing. They are usually tied in pairs with a string on their tails, deep gold in color on the outside and creamy white on the inside.

Macrou afumat is Romanian smoked mackerel, characterized by a pleasant smoky flavor and a distinctive copper hue. This fish specialty is usually prepared by seasoning cleaned, dry fish with salt or marinating the fish in brine, then cold smoking it.

One of the staples of traditional Icelandic diet, harðfiskur is a fish delicacy made by following an old preserving method that involves drying fresh fish on wooden racks, outdoors in the cool Icelandic wind. The fish may be soaked in a weak brine before being dried for a slightly saltier flavor of the finished product.