Clawed lobsters compose a family of large marine crustaceans. Lobsters are economically important as seafood, forming the basis of a global industry that nets US$1.8 billion in trade annually.
Though several different groups of crustaceans are known as "lobsters," the clawed lobsters are most often associated with the name. Clawed lobsters are not closely related to spiny lobsters or slipper lobsters, which have no claws, or squat lobsters. The closest relatives of clawed lobsters are the reef lobster Enoplometopus and the three families of freshwater crayfish.