The short answer
- Per week, co-ownership does not automatically beat chartering: on class medians a quarter share is 32% more expensive than a motor charter week.
- The comparison changes by type: for sailing yachts and catamarans our medians put the share below the charter rate per week.
- Charter buys weeks; a share buys weeks plus an asset — €403,216 comes back to each partner at the modelled sale.
The honest comparison
Our charter data covers 85,489 listings and gives a median asking rate per foot per week by class. Multiply it by a length and you get the going rate for a week afloat. Our sale data gives the median asking price of the equivalent class, which the model turns into a cost per owner week.
One caveat decides how to read the table: charter medians pool every age and specification in a class, and the median chartered boat is far smaller and older than a 50–110 ft co-ownership candidate. A new 70 ft yacht charters well above the class median, so the true gap favours ownership more than the table shows. We publish the conservative version.
| Comparison | Charter week (class median) | Share: cost per week | Weeks of charter equal to the 5-yr share cost | Resale share returned |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 ft motor yacht | €7,840 | €10,373 | 66 weeks | €403,216 |
| 56 ft catamaran | €6,272 | €4,806 | 38 weeks | €186,818 |
| 56 ft sailing yacht | €2,800 | €2,619 | 47 weeks | €101,800 |
Original GetBoat data: 415 euro-converted asking prices of 50–110 ft yachts listed for sale by GetBoat and its partners on 2026-09-20, plus the GetBoat market index (8,474 priced sale listings, 85,489 charter listings). Asking prices, not completed sales. Individual listings are never identified. Model: annual running budget 10% of the yacht price growing 3% a year, resale after 5 years at 72% of the price (per-brand depreciation in the GetBoat market index) less 7% selling costs, 40 owner weeks a year. Excludes VAT, financing, personal tax and programme fees. Illustration, not an offer. Charter rates are class-median asking rates per foot per week across the whole charter catalogue, not rates for yachts of this age and size.
What the numbers do and do not prove
They prove that a light user who wants a different boat every season should charter: at €7,840 a week, a fortnight a year costs €15,680 and carries no capital, no maintenance risk and no exit.
They also prove that the comparison is close enough that the non-price differences decide it: the same yacht every time, your own tender, equipment and crew, your gear left on board, and €403,216 per partner coming back at the sale on our model.
A rule of thumb from the table
Under about four charter weeks a year, chartering is simpler and usually cheaper. Between four and 10 weeks, a share is competitive on cost and clearly better on consistency. Above 10 weeks you have outgrown a quarter share and should price a larger one.
Whichever way the arithmetic lands, do it with the same yacht on both sides. Comparing a quarter share of a new 70 ft yacht with charter of a fifteen-year-old 50 ft boat is the most common error in this decision.
Decision checklist
- 1Weeks a year you charter today, counted from invoices
- 2Charter rate for a comparable age and specification, not a class median
- 3Five-year share cost calculated on the same yacht
- 4Resale share included on the ownership side of the comparison
- 5Value of consistency and stored equipment assessed explicitly
- 6Exit route from the share understood before you commit
What buyers ask next
Why publish a comparison that does not always favour co-ownership?
Because a buyer will run this calculation anyway, and a case that only works with flattering inputs is not a case. Our data says co-ownership wins on capital, on consistency and on the asset, not on the raw price of a chartered week.
Can charter income offset the cost of a share?
Chartering an owned yacht changes insurance, flag, tax and wear, and is a separate decision with its own economics. The figures here are for private use only.
This guide is general information, not legal, tax, financial, insurance or survey advice. Requirements vary by yacht, provider and jurisdiction; use qualified independent professionals for the transaction. Read our editorial policy.
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