Are New Boats Really Crazily Expensive?
So, while looking for The Next Boat, I've engaged in several discussions about the prices of new boats in the current market. "The prices are absolutely crazy!" is the prevailing sentiment. But are they really?
To get past the anecdotal evidence of "of course they are", I dug into my archives and did some comparisons for a few Hanse yachts.
Hanse 470e (2007) vs Hanse 460 (2025)
While checking out a Hanse 470e in Greifswald, I happened to come by an original price list from 2007. Using this price list (from just before the global financial crisis hit!) and the 470 spec sheet, I then tried to build a close-enough version of a present day Hanse 460, and here's what I got.
| Boat | Base boat | Options | Total | diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hanse 470e (2007) | 199.800 € | 53.352 € | 253.152 € | |
| Hanse 460 (2025) | 329.900 € | 96.550 € | 426.450 € | +68.5% |
Options (roughly): Standard (medium) keel, electronic package, cruising package, performance package, retractable cleats, comfort package, interior wood upgrade, leather upholstery, additional winches, lazy bag/jacks, sprayhood, folding prop, bow thruster, heating, microwave.
So, the headline +68.5% actually seems to confirm the subjective feeling of "crazily expensive", but there is a big BUT here: inflation.
When we adjust for inflation (ie nominally everything is more expensive now than then: one euro in 2007 is about 1.47 euros in 2025), we get this:
| Boat | Base boat | Options | Total | diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hanse 470e (adjusted for inflation) | 293.706 € | 78.428 € | 372.134 € | |
| Hanse 460 (2025) | 329.900 € | 96.550 € | 426.450 € | +14.6% |
So a new Hanse 460 is, in fact, slightly more expensive than a 470e bought nineteen years ago, but (I would argue) not crazily much more so. Myth busted! At least for this pairing.
But what about a more recent comparison?
Hanse 388 (2018) vs Hanse 388 (2025) vs Hanse 360 (2025)
The following comparison is between the Hanse 388 we bought in 2018 vs their price list for a 388 in 2025 and an equally-specified 360 from 2025. I don't include the (then) almost standard early-bird discounts, so the comparison is between plain non-discounted price list items.
First, the nominal numbers (without inflation):
| H388 2018 | H388 2025 | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base boat | 122 900 € | 184 900 € | +50.4% |
| Options (comparable subset) | 68 270 € | 88 500 € | +29.6% |
| Boat + options, ex VAT | 191 170 € | 273 400 € | +43.0% |
| Boat + options, incl. VAT (24%→25.5%) | 237 051 € | 343 117 € | +44.7% |
| H388 2018 | H360 2025 | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base boat | 122 900 € | 185 900 € | +51.3% |
| Options (comparable subset) | 68 270 € | 99 550 € | +45.8% |
| Boat + options, ex VAT | 191 170 € | 285 450 € | +49.3% |
| Boat + options, incl. VAT (24%→25.5%) | 237 051 € | 358 240 € | +51.1% |
And then adjusted with inflation:
| H388 2018 (2025 €) | H388 2025 | Real Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base boat | 154 854 € | 184 900 € | +19.4% |
| Options (comparable subset) | 86 020 € | 88 500 € | +2.9% |
| Boat + options, ex VAT | 240 874 € | 273 400 € | +13.5% |
| H388 2018 (2025 €) | H360 2025 | Real Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base boat | 154 854 € | 185 900 € | +20.0% |
| Options (comparable subset) | 86 020 € | 99 550 € | +15.7% |
| Boat + options, ex VAT | 240 874 € | 285 450 € | +18.5% |
So, while the Hanse 388 including options nominally was up 43%, real increase 2018-2025 was only 13.5%. Interestingly, almost all of the price increase went into the base boat, while the options stayed the same. (Good pricing strategy if you intend to deeply discount the options!)
The Hanse 360 is a slightly different story. Its inflation adjusted price is close to 20% above the Hanse 388 from 2018, even though the 360 is arguably a slightly lesser boat! It's close, though. And the 360 with a bigger mainsail and a real genoa does, in fact, put it performance-wise on par with the 388.
| Metric | H388 | H360 | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| LOA | 11.40 m | 11.32 m | −0.08 m |
| Hull length | 10.99 m | 10.60 m | −0.39 m |
| LWL | 10.40 m | 10.29 m | −0.11 m |
| Beam | 3.90 m | 3.99 m | +0.09 m |
| Draft (L-keel, standard) | 2.06 m | 2.05 m | −0.01 m |
| Draft (shallow keel, option) | 1.62 m | 1.65 m | +0.03 m |
| Displacement (L-keel, standard) | 8.27 t | 7.80 t | −0.47 t |
| Sail area, standard rig (main + STJ) | 72.0 m² | 61.0 m² | −11.0 m² (−15.3%) |
| — Mainsail, standard | 43.5 m² | 35.0 m² | −8.5 m² |
| — Mainsail, furling | 39.0 m² | 33.0 m² | −6.0 m² |
| — Mainsail, square top | not offered | 40.0 m² | new |
| — Self-tacking jib | 28.5 m² | 26.0 m² | −2.5 m² |
| — Genoa | not offered | 32.0 m² | new |
| Crossover | 61.1 m² | 68.0 m² | +6.9 m² |
| Gennaker | 93.9 m² | 103.0 m² | +9.1 m² |
| Mast above WL | 17.60 m | 16.75 m | −0.85 m |
| Fuel | 160 l | 160 l | — |
| Fresh water | 295 l | 345 l | +50 l |
| Hull speed (1.34·√LWL) | 7.83 kt | 7.79 kt | −0.04 kt |
| D/L ratio | 205 | 200 | −5 |
| SA/D ratio | 17.9 | 15.8 | −2.1 (−11.8%) |
So are new boats crazily more expensive?
My conclusion: not really.
Nominally, certainly, but overall inflation explains a lot of it. Not all, though: new boats (at least these) are significantly more expensive, also in inflation-adjusted real money. Just not crazily much so.
On the bright side, however, average wages have gone up too-- even slightly more than inflation, apparently!
I guess this may be as good a time as any to buy a new boat, after all :)
