Even if you rely on a yacht-management firm, it’s helpful to have more than one source for information on operational best practices. To provide the industry and owners alike with better insight when it comes to paying crew, YPI Crew created the Yachting Salaries website in early 2016. It collects figures voluntarily entered by captains and crewmembers worldwide. In fact, the site currently has data from more than 2,800 individuals. Its most recent annual report on superyacht salaries, based on 2,500 entries, should be on your reading list.
First, YPI Crew is quick to point out that Yachting Salaries runs independently. Even though YPI established it, the company did so in the spirit of transparency. Simply put, no central source of information has ever existed. Despite some media outlets conducting crew salary surveys, for example, few are annual. Related, some management firms compile data, but they, too, suffer from updated details, and/or limited crew numbers. Yachting Salaries updates daily, plus makes the superyacht salaries available to all. This includes job-hunting crew.
Yachting Salaries provides a snapshot of what different positions pay, aboard motoryachts and sailing yachts of various sizes. In addition, it compares and contrasts permanent, temp, and rotational jobs. Furthermore, it analyzes private yachts versus charter yachts.
For the full report, visit the YPI Crew website. In the meantime, here are some of the biggest takeaways.
- Captains. Not surprising, captains of the largest yachts afloat make the most money. Among yachts 81 to 100 meters (266 to 328 feet) LOA, permanent captains tend to make €18,000 (about $22,400 at press time) per month. (Note that these figures are only for motoryachts. Yachting Salaries doesn’t have data from sailing captains in this size range. Few exist as well.) More than 400 captains contributed to the overall data.
- Engineers and other technical crew. Chief engineers, second engineers, ETOs, AVIs, and electrical engineers fall into this category. The website team was surprised to discover that the latter three jobs gain the most from rotation. Their superyacht salaries typically fall at the higher end of the €4,000 to €6,500 per-month range. That’s about $4,975 to $8,100 per month. This, regardless of yacht size.
- Chefs. Unfortunately, no consistent results here. In fact, superyacht salaries for head chefs range from €3,500 to €10,000 per month ($4,350 to $12,400), not always related to the yacht’s LOA.
- Stews and stewardesses. Monthly chief stew salaries range from €3,000 ($3,700) on yachts closer to the 80-foot mark on up to €9,000 ($11,200) for the largest yachts afloat.
- Deckhands. Fewer than 100 deckhands entered their superyacht salaries, but the website found consistencies. Monthly pay is typically €2,100 ($2,600) or better for smaller yachts and to €3,000 ($3,732) for the largest ones.
MrKhaki
What’s the average tip income per month?
Diane M. Byrne
The dollar/euro amount varies depending on the yacht’s charter rate, and the frequency of bookings per month. But, in general, charter guests tip 5 to 15 percent of the base charter fee.