The true annual cost of boat ownership - sailing yachts, motor cruisers, wakeboats and narrowboats. UK and Mediterranean rates, in £, € or $.
260hp diesel at relaxed cruising load burns about 46 L/h - 4h under power on each of 25 trips.
Every figure is a starting estimate you can override. Berthing and licensing are region-specific; other costs use UK-derived figures converted to your currency. Indicative, not financial advice.
Six lines make up the true cost of ownership. Most buyers plan for two of them.
Usually the biggest single line. Scales with length and location - a South-coast marina berth costs multiples of a swing mooring, and a Riviera berth multiples again. Inland, a towpath mooring undercuts an inland marina by half.
Routine servicing is set by the schedule, not the boat's age. What rises with age is unplanned repair - so we hold that separately in a wear fund rather than inflating your service bill.
Driven by engine power and how hard you actually run it, not hull type. A wakeboat spends most of its day idling between riders; a planing cruiser at 60% load burns several times more per hour.
Roughly 0.5-1.5% of insured value a year. The percentage falls as value rises, and sail insures cheaper than powerboats of the same worth.
Inland boats carry a Canal & River Trust licence plus a Boat Safety Scheme certificate - together often the largest fixed cost a narrowboat owner faces. Coastal boats pay far less here.
The cost you never see leave your account. Steepest in the first years, then it flattens. By 15 years most boats sit near their floor - which is why an older boat can be cheaper to own than its price suggests.
Berthing is the line that varies most by geography. Typical 2026 annual rates:
Per-metre rates are multiplied by length overall. Fixed-fee moorings (club, towpath, swing) don't scale with size, which is why they undercut marinas so heavily on larger boats.
People use this calculator while actively pricing up ownership - the moment they need a berth, a broker, insurance or finance.
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It varies enormously by size, engine power and where it's kept. A trailered sportsboat can run under £5,000 a year; a marina-berthed motor cruiser can pass £20,000. Mooring, insurance, maintenance and fuel are the four big levers - use the calculator above for a figure specific to your boat.
Usually yes. Sailboats burn a fraction of the fuel, carry smaller service bills, and depreciate more slowly because there's less machinery to maintain and insure. The offset is rigging and sail replacement, which powerboats don't have.
The Canal & River Trust licence is the biggest fixed cost - typically £1,260-£1,570 a year for a 57-60ft boat in 2026-27, with a surcharge if you have no home mooring. Add a Boat Safety Scheme certificate every four years, hull blacking every two to three, and mooring fees.
Roughly 0.5-1.5% of the boat's insured value per year is a common range. The rate falls as value rises, and depends on boat type, where it's kept and how it's used.
A similar shape at different speeds. Most of the fall happens early, then it flattens. Performance and wake boats depreciate fastest; sailing yachts and narrowboats hold value best - a well-kept steel narrowboat can be nearly flat after fifteen years.
For coastal owners it's berthing, which scales with length and never stops. For inland owners it's licensing. For everyone it's depreciation - the cost that never appears on a bill.
Running costs, berthing rates and buying guides. One email a week, free.