How Much Does a Yacht Cost? Prices by Size and Type

A new yacht costs anywhere from about $150,000 for a 30-foot cruiser to well over $10 million once you pass 100 feet, and the biggest custom superyachts run into the hundreds of millions. That spread is why a single “average” number tells you so little. When people ask how much does a yacht cost, the answer depends on four things: length, type, age, and whether you buy new or used. Boats Group’s market data puts the average asking price at around $136,000 for boats between 26 and 35 feet, about $1.18 million for the 56 to 79 foot range, and close to $5 million for yachts over 80 feet. Below, you’ll find prices by size and type, what a used yacht saves you, and the yearly bills most first-time buyers underestimate.

How much does a yacht cost on average?

The average cost of a yacht sits somewhere between $500,000 and $2 million if you look at the boats most private buyers are shopping for (roughly 35 to 65 feet). That figure is skewed, though. A huge number of small cruisers sell for under $300,000, and a handful of superyachts sell for $50 million or more, so the “average” gets pulled up hard at the top end.

A more useful way to think about it: price climbs faster than length. Going from 40 feet to 50 feet can double the price. Going from 50 feet to 80 feet can multiply it by four or five, because you’re adding a flybridge, bigger engines, crew quarters, and systems a small boat simply doesn’t have.

Custom new builds follow a rough rule that brokers quote all the time: about $1 million per meter of length. So a new 50-meter (164-foot) custom yacht lands somewhere near $45 million to $70 million before extras.

How much does a yacht cost by size?

Here’s the yacht price range you can expect by length, based on current listings and broker data. Treat these as ballpark figures. Brand, age, engines, and condition can move any single boat well outside its band.

How much is a 30-foot yacht?

A 30 ft yacht price starts at around $150,000 new for an entry-level express cruiser. The 2026 STERK 31, for example, was listed at about $153,000. Older used boats in this size can drop below $75,000, but you’ll often be paying for engine work or new upholstery soon after. This is the size where a lot of weekend boaters start, since one person can run it and many marinas have room for it.

How much is a 50-foot yacht?

The 50 foot yacht price is where things jump. Recent Azimut 50 listings show the gap clearly: a 2016 model at around $769,000, a 2022 model near $1.1 million, and a brand-new Azimut Fly 50 at roughly $2.1 million. That’s the same model family, with a $1.3 million spread driven almost entirely by age. Sportfishing yachts cost more for their length. A Viking 46 Billfish lists around $1.9 million.

How much does a 70-foot yacht cost?

At 60 to 70 feet, most boats have a full flybridge, three or four cabins, and space for a paid captain. Expect $3 million to $7 million new. A Viking 64 sportfish is listed near $5.5 million, and a five-year-old Azimut S7 sells for around €2 million. This is also the size where you start thinking seriously about hiring crew.

How much does a 100 ft yacht cost?

A 100-foot yacht usually costs $8 million to $16 million. New, a Lazzara UHV 100 lists at about $15.7 million, while a used 2024 Sunseeker 100 was offered around $13.4 million. At this length you’re past the “big boat” stage and into the lower end of superyacht territory, with three to five full-time crew as standard.

How much does a superyacht cost?

A yacht is generally called a superyacht once it passes 24 meters (about 79 feet), though most people in the industry picture something closer to 40 meters and up. Prices at this level get big fast:

• 24 to 40 meters: $5 million to $15 million new, $2 million to $10 million used
• 40 to 60 meters: $15 million to $40 million new, $10 million to $30 million used
• 60 to 90 meters: $50 million to $180 million, depending on builder and age
• 90 meters and up: $150 million to $600 million or more

At the very top you get one-off projects. The 180-meter Azzam, one of the longest private yachts ever built, is estimated to have cost around $600 million. Numbers like that are why a new build at this size takes three to four years and usually carries a 10 to 15 percent contingency budget on top of the contract price.

How much does a yacht cost by type?

Length sets the baseline, but the type of yacht moves the price a lot. Two 50-foot boats can differ by a million dollars just because one is a sportfish and the other is a sailing yacht.

Motor yachts

Motor yachts are the most common type on the market, from express cruisers to flybridge models. They’re the benchmark for most of the prices above. New motor yachts tend to cost 20 to 50 percent more than a comparable five-year-old used one.

Sailing yachts

A sailing yacht usually costs less than a motor yacht of the same length, because the engines and fuel systems are smaller. A good used 40-foot sailboat can be found for $150,000 to $400,000. Larger sailing yachts between 24 and 40 meters sell for roughly $500,000 to $10 million used.

Catamarans

Power and sailing catamarans cost more per foot than a monohull, since you’re getting two hulls and much more deck and cabin space. A new 40 to 50 foot cruising catamaran commonly runs $600,000 to $1.5 million. They hold their value well because charter companies buy so many of them.

Sportfishing yachts

Sportfish boats are built for speed and offshore fishing, with big engines and heavy construction. They cost more than other motor yachts at the same length. The Viking range shows it: roughly $1.9 million for a 46, $5.5 million for a 64, and about $7.6 million for a 74.

Explorer yachts

Explorer yachts have steel hulls, long fuel range, and ice-class or heavy-weather features for remote cruising. Used 30 to 55 meter explorers sell for about $4 million to $45 million, and they carry a premium of roughly $3 million to $8 million over a similar-length motor yacht.

New vs. used: how much can you save?

Buying used is the simplest way to cut the cost of a yacht. Yachts lose about 10 percent of their value in the first year and around 6 to 8 percent each year after that, so a five-year-old boat is often 40 to 50 percent cheaper than a new one.

New gives you a warranty, the latest layout, and the option to customize. It also means waiting. Production boats can take a year or more to deliver, and custom builds take three to four years. Used gets you on the water now, but budget for a proper survey and some early repairs. A $500 to $2,000 survey on a small yacht is cheap insurance against a $50,000 engine surprise.

How much does it cost to own a yacht per year?

The sticker price only covers part of how much a yacht costs over time. The common rule of thumb is that running a yacht costs about 10 percent of its purchase price every year, and the realistic range is 5 to 20 percent depending on how much you use it and whether you pay crew.

For a $1 million yacht, that works out to roughly $50,000 to $150,000 a year. For a $30 million, 50-meter superyacht, annual costs of $2.5 million to $5 million are normal.

What goes into yearly yacht costs

• Crew: the biggest line item on anything over about 80 feet, often 30 to 40 percent of total running costs. A captain on a 50-meter yacht earns $100,000 to $180,000 a year.
• Maintenance and repairs: plan on around 10 percent of the boat’s value each year on larger yachts, plus bigger refits every few years.
• Dockage: from $10,000 a year for a small boat at a local marina to $500,000 for a superyacht berth in the Mediterranean.
• Insurance: roughly 0.5 to 1 percent of the hull value for larger yachts, and often 1 to 2 percent on smaller boats.
• Fuel: a 50-meter yacht can burn $250,000 to $500,000 in fuel in a single cruising season.
• Extras: tenders, water toys, management fees, registration, and taxes. VAT alone can add up to a quarter of the purchase price in some European countries.

Monthly cost of owning a yacht

Split across a year, a 40 to 50 foot yacht commonly costs $4,000 to $12,000 a month to keep, before you add loan payments. A 30-meter yacht with a small crew is closer to $55,000 to $100,000 a month. Many owners charter their yacht out for part of the year to offset some of this. A 30-meter motor yacht can earn $50,000 to $100,000 a week in the Mediterranean high season.

What affects the price of a yacht?

If you’re comparing two listings and wondering why one costs twice as much, these are usually the reasons:

• Builder: brands like Feadship, Lürssen, and Benetti sit at the top, while production builders cost far less for the same length.
• Age and engine hours: a boat with fresh engines and recent refit work is worth much more than one due for both.
• Materials: steel and aluminum hulls cost more than fiberglass, and teak decks add to the price.
• Features: stabilizers, a flybridge, a beach club, and upgraded electronics all push the number up.
• Where it’s sold: prices and taxes differ between the US, Europe, and Asia, and moving a yacht across an ocean is expensive.

Is it cheaper to charter than to buy?

For most people, yes. If you’d use a yacht for two or three weeks a year, chartering almost always costs less than owning once you add up depreciation and running costs. Weekly charter rates start around $30,000 for an entry-level crewed yacht and go past $500,000 for large superyachts. Expect fuel, food, drinks, and crew tips to add roughly 30 to 50 percent on top of the base rate.

If even a charter is more than you want to spend right now, there are cheaper ways to get your ocean fix. A big-ship cruise like Royal Caribbean’s Star of the Seas gives you days at sea for a fraction of the price, and a fast day trip such as the Key West Express from Fort Myers or the Catalina Express to Catalina Island scratches the itch for an afternoon on the water.

Frequently asked questions

Conclusion

So, how much does a yacht cost? Budget around $150,000 for a new 30-foot boat, $1 million to $2.5 million for a 50-footer, and $10 million or more once you reach 100 feet and superyacht territory. Then add roughly 10 percent of that price every year to keep it running. Buying a few years old saves the most money, and chartering makes more sense than owning if you’ll only be aboard for a couple of weeks a year. For more boat, ferry, and cruise guides, head over to The Ocean Culture and browse the latest posts.