Marina Slip Cost in 2026: Rates by Region

I priced moorage at three marinas within twenty minutes of Lions Bay this spring, and the quotes came back as three numbers that looked almost identical. Then I read the actual contracts. One billed on my boat's length, one billed on the slip's length, one billed on the slip length and added a 15% infrastructure surcharge for a dock that had been rebuilt two years earlier. The spread between the cheapest and the most expensive was about $2,800 a year on a 35-foot boat — on quotes that had looked within a few hundred dollars of each other over the phone.

That's the thing nobody tells you about slip fees. The per-foot rate is the number marinas advertise, and it's the number every article about slip costs quotes back at you. It's also the number that has the least to do with what you actually pay. The bill is the per-foot rate multiplied by a length you may not have agreed on, plus tax, plus power, plus a handful of line items that don't show up until the invoice does.

Here's what marina slips actually cost in 2026, how the billing works, and what to check before you sign a moorage agreement.

The short answer

A marina slip costs $15 to $35 per foot per month in 2026 across most of North America. That works out to roughly $525 to $1,225 per month for a 35-foot boat. Premium urban markets — Manhattan, Miami, San Francisco Bay, Southern California — run $40 to $60+ per foot. Inland lakes and small coastal towns run $8 to $15.

Those are open-slip rates with 30-amp power and water, before tax and before extras. Expect the all-in number to land 15% to 40% above the advertised per-foot rate once you add everything up.

How marinas actually calculate your bill

Almost every marina prices on a per-foot basis, but three details determine whether "per foot" means what you think it means.

Billable length is LOA or slip length, whichever is greater. If your 34-foot boat sits in a 36-foot slip, you pay for 36 feet. Many marinas only sell slips in fixed increments, so a 34-footer with no 34-foot slips available pays 36-foot rates indefinitely.

LOA is not hull length. Length overall includes the bow pulpit, the anchor roller, the swim platform, and the davits. A boat sold as a "35" is frequently 37 or 38 feet of billable LOA. On a $29/foot rate, three extra feet is $87 a month — over $1,000 a year for equipment hanging off both ends.

Covered and sheltered moorage is a different price tier entirely. In the Pacific Northwest, where covered moorage is common, the premium is substantial. Thunderbird Marina in West Vancouver quotes $12,180/year for an open 35-foot slip in its 2026–27 season; sheltered moorage at 40 feet runs $24,565/year against $14,810 for the open equivalent. That's roughly a 66% premium for a roof.

Measure your boat bow-roller-to-davit before you get quoted, and ask which number the marina bills on. It's the single fastest way to find out whether two quotes are actually comparable.

What slips cost in 2026, by region

Typical per-foot-per-month ranges for standard open slips:

Pacific Northwest (BC and Washington): $18 to $30. Puget Sound marinas cluster around $20 to $30. Des Moines Marina's published 2026 schedule runs $10.24/foot for a 20-foot slip up to $20.31/foot at 50 feet — plus 12.84% leasehold tax on every line, and the marina raised all slip rates 15% for 2026. In BC, Discovery Harbour in Campbell River quotes $24.90/foot in season and $14.40/foot off season.

Northeast: $22 to $45, and $30 to $60+ in New York City and on Long Island's North Shore. Newport, Cape Cod, and the Islands sit at the top of the Massachusetts and Rhode Island ranges.

Mid-Atlantic: $15 to $30. Chesapeake marinas in Maryland and Virginia typically run $18 to $28, with premium Annapolis facilities higher.

Southeast and Florida: $12 to $50. Miami and the Keys anchor the top; the Panhandle and Georgia coast run $12 to $22.

Great Lakes: $12 to $25, usually sold seasonally rather than monthly because the season is five to six months long.

Gulf Coast and inland: $8 to $16. Lake Cumberland, Table Rock, Lake of the Ozarks, and Corps of Engineers reservoirs are the cheapest moorage in North America.

California: $25 to $50, led by San Francisco Bay and the Southern California basin.

Convert every quote to dollars per foot per month before comparing. Marinas quote annually, seasonally, and monthly, sometimes in the same brochure, and the units are where the real differences hide.

Monthly, seasonal, or annual

Monthly is the most flexible and the most expensive per foot. Seasonal covers a defined window — typically May through October in northern markets. Annual is the cheapest per month and holds your slip year-round.

Annual prepayment usually saves 10% to 20% over month-to-month. In seasonal markets the arithmetic is less obvious than it looks, because a seasonal contract means you also pay for haul-out, blocking, and winter storage: budget $500 to $2,000 depending on boat size and yard. Run the full year both ways before assuming seasonal is cheaper. For boats in the water year-round in mild climates, annual almost always wins.

There's a second reason to take annual seriously in tight markets: it's how you keep the slip. Good marinas in the PNW, the Chesapeake, and coastal California are full. Coal Harbour Marina in Vancouver is currently at capacity and runs a waitlist requiring a $10,000 refundable deposit plus a $500 annual non-refundable administrative fee for boats 60 feet and under. A slip you already hold is worth more than the discount attached to it.

The fees that aren't in the per-foot rate

Ask about every one of these before signing. Any of them can move the real number by hundreds of dollars a month.

Tax. Sales, leasehold, or GST depending on jurisdiction. Des Moines adds 12.84% leasehold tax; BC marinas add 5% GST. This is never in the advertised rate.

Metered electricity. There's a large gap between "power included" and "billed at cost." A boat running a dehumidifier and a heater through a wet winter, or air conditioning through a Florida summer, can add $100 to $400 a month. Ask whether the slip is 30-amp or 50-amp and whether it's metered per berth.

Liveaboard fee. $100 to $400 a month on top of the slip rate, or 10% to 20% of base dockage. Also ask whether the marina permits liveaboards at all — many cap the number by zoning.

Insurance requirements. Nearly every marina requires hull and third-party liability coverage, typically $1–2 million liability, as a condition of the lease. Coverage minimums and carrier restrictions can raise your insurance premium above what you'd otherwise carry.

Pump-out. Included at some marinas, $5 to $15 per use at others.

Parking, gate cards, and dinghy or kayak storage. Urban marinas frequently unbundle these.

Rate escalation. Ask what the rate did over the last three years, not just what it is today. A 15% single-year increase is not hypothetical — Des Moines did exactly that for 2026.

The alternatives worth pricing

A slip isn't the only way to keep a boat, and in expensive markets the alternatives change the math materially.

Mooring buoy or swing mooring typically runs a fraction of slip cost, with the trade-off being dinghy access, no shore power, and more exposure. In many BC and New England harbours this is the difference between $12,000 a year and $2,000.

Dry moorage or dry stack is common for powerboats under 30 feet and is priced monthly. Thunderbird's dry moorage runs $785 to $1,352/month for 30- to 40-foot boats over the September-to-April window, with a 20% discount for existing annual moorage clients.

Trailer storage is cheapest of all if the boat is trailerable and you're willing to launch each trip. It also lowers your insurance premium, since trailered boats are rated as lower risk than boats moored on the water year-round.

Off-season rates. Several PNW marinas cut per-foot rates roughly 40% outside the summer season. If the boat only gets used six months of the year, a seasonal-plus-winter-storage arrangement can beat annual moorage outright.

Knowing what the slip actually costs you

Moorage is usually the largest single line in a boat budget — bigger than insurance, and for lightly used boats, bigger than maintenance. It's also the one people track least carefully, because it's automatic. It comes off the card monthly and disappears.

The number that matters isn't the monthly rate. It's the cost per use. A 35-foot boat at $1,015 a month costs $12,180 a year in moorage alone. Used twenty days a season, that's $609 per day on the water before fuel, before a single oil change. Some owners look at that and keep paying happily. Others look at it and switch to a mooring buoy, or trailer the boat, or finally sell it. Either decision is fine. Making it without the number is the problem.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to dock a boat at a marina per month?
Between $15 and $35 per foot per month across most of North America in 2026 — about $525 to $1,225 monthly for a 35-foot boat. Premium urban marinas reach $40 to $60+ per foot; inland lakes run $8 to $15.

Is it cheaper to pay for a slip annually or monthly?
Annual prepayment typically saves 10% to 20% versus month-to-month. In seasonal climates, compare annual against seasonal moorage plus $500 to $2,000 in haul-out and winter storage before deciding.

Do marinas charge by boat length or slip length?
Whichever is greater. Most marinas bill on slip length or length overall, and LOA includes bow pulpits, swim platforms, and davits — not just hull length.

What is a liveaboard fee?
An additional monthly charge, usually $100 to $400 or 10% to 20% of base dockage, for using the boat as a residence. Many marinas also cap how many liveaboard berths they permit.

Why are marina slips so hard to get?
Waterfront zoning limits new marina construction while boat ownership has grown, so desirable marinas run at capacity. Some maintain formal waitlists with deposits — Coal Harbour in Vancouver requires a $10,000 refundable deposit and a $500 annual administrative fee for boats under 60 feet.

Does moorage affect boat insurance?
Yes. Boats moored on the water year-round are rated higher risk than trailered boats. Marina storage typically falls in between, and liveaboards pay more because of continuous occupancy.

My Boat Brain tracks moorage as a recurring expense alongside fuel, maintenance, insurance, and haul-out, so your true annual cost of ownership is a number you can look up instead of estimate. Log your trips and it will tell you what each day on the water actually costs. When your marina raises rates 15%, you will be able to see what that does to the whole picture rather than just the invoice. 30-day free trial, no credit card. myboatbrain.com