Yacht Cost

Private Yacht Cost

 

Yacht Cost

Yacht CostBuy, Maintain, Charter

Are you considering buying a yacht and wondering how much they cost, both to purchase and to maintain?

Purchase Cost

The purchase cost of yachts vary with their age, style, condition, amenities and exponentially - not linearly - with length. This is because double the length means not double but six times the weight and displacement, as well as additional intricacies in engineering and interior design.

For example, new 20-foot yachts cost under $50,000 but 30-foot weekenders run around $200,000 and new 50-foot cruisers around $1 million, while 100 footers top $8-10 million.
The price climbs exponentially for yachts that exceed 100 feet. New 250-foot yachts run $50-70 million. Zeus, Larry Ellison's former Katana, is in this range.

New 350 to 450-foot megayachts like the Rising Sun, Luna, Pelorus, Radiant, and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen's Octopus cost 3 to 5 times more, between $200 million to $300 million. The 531-foot Dubai cost $400 million while the slightly longer Eclipse cost $485 million. The 591-foot Azzam and the shorter but unusually wide Dilbar III (the successor to Dilbar II) both cost about $600 million, while the Gigayacht will top $1 billion. The table below lists ten of the longest yachts in the world today.

YACHT LENGTH BUILT FOR OWNER
Gigayacht 728 feet   $1 billion  
Azzam 591 feet 2013 $630 million Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan
Eclipse 533 feet 2010 $485 million Roman Abramovich
Dubai 531 feet 2006 $400 million Mohammed bin al Maktoum
Rising Sun 453 feet 2004 $300 million David Geffen
Octopus 414 feet 2003 $250 million Paul Allen
Luna 377 feet 2010 $300 million Farkhad Akhmedov
Pelorus 377 feet 2003 $300 million Samuel Tak Lee
Radiant 361 feet 2009 $286 million Abdullah al Futtaim
Dilbar II 360 feet 2008 $263 million Alisher Usmanov
Maintenance Cost

The annual cost to insure, operate, maintain and store a yacht averages roughly 10% of its purchase price, so every ten years, you will end up paying for your yacht all over again. Operating a megayacht like those above includes hiring and maintaining a crew of up to eighty, who live onboard year-round.

Charter Costs

Crewed yacht charters are priced either "all inclusive," which means all food, water, drinks, fuel and other consumables are included (dock fees and tax are still extra), or "plus expenses," which means the consumables are billed in addition.

Crewed charter cost for a small yacht typically start at $10,000 to $15,000 per week and rise quickly. For example, chartering a crewed 150 footer for a week can cost $100,000 to $500,000, "plus expenses."

Almost all megayachts, including those above, are registered as charter vessels but never actually available; the charter registration lets their owners to avoid property tax.

So, how much should you spend on your yacht?
That depends on your perspective. If your wealth is self-made, click here. If you've been blessed with it, click here.