Almost every enquiry about berthing starts with the same question and gets the same unhelpful answer: it depends. It does depend — on length overall, beam, location, tenure and what the marina includes — but the pricing logic behind an Australian berth is consistent enough to explain properly. This guide sets out how berths are priced in 2026, the range you should expect by vessel size and region, the levers that move a quote, and the charges that turn a headline rate into a materially bigger annual number. It is written from the marina side of the desk, because that is where we work.
How Australian marinas actually price a berth
The standard unit is dollars per metre per month or per annum, calculated on berth length rather than the vessel's registered length overall. If you have a 14.5-metre boat sitting in a 15-metre pen, you pay for 15 metres. Bowsprits, davits, duckboards and tenders on a stern platform all count toward the space occupied, and a marina that measures honestly will measure the whole footprint.
Beam matters as much as length in modern fleets. Catamarans and wide-beam flybridge motor yachts occupy space that could otherwise take two monohulls, so most marinas apply a multi-hull or over-beam loading of anywhere from 25 to 75 per cent, or place the vessel on a hammerhead at a premium rate.
Indicative 2026 ranges by vessel length
The figures below are indicative annual contracted berthing ranges observed across Australian marinas in 2026, inclusive of GST. Metropolitan harbour locations sit at the top of each band; regional and river marinas sit at the bottom.
- 10 metres: roughly $7,000 to $16,000 per annum, with Sydney Harbour, Gold Coast Broadwater and Melbourne's inner bay marinas at the upper end.
- 12 metres: roughly $9,000 to $21,000 per annum. This is the most competitive size band in the country and the one most likely to have a waitlist.
- 15 metres: roughly $13,000 to $30,000 per annum, with power and water metered separately in most facilities.
- 18 to 20 metres: roughly $20,000 to $50,000 per annum. Above 18 metres the number of available pens drops sharply and pricing becomes negotiated rather than published.
- 24 metres and above: quoted individually. Superyacht berths are priced on the value of the frontage, not on a rate card.
- Casual and visitor berthing: commonly $2.50 to $8.00 per metre per night, with three-night and weekly rates discounted, and event weeks priced above the standard rate.
What pushes a berth rate up
Two marinas an hour apart can differ by 60 per cent on the same length. The drivers are predictable.
- Protection and depth. A dredged, breakwater-protected basin with all-tide access commands more than a tidal river berth with a shallow entrance.
- Services at the pedestal. Three-phase power, potable water, sewage pump-out, high-speed internet and fuel on site all lift the rate.
- Hardstand and travel lift capacity. A marina that can lift and hold your vessel is worth more than one that cannot.
- Security and access control. Gated arms, CCTV coverage and a manned dockmaster office reduce insurance premiums and justify a premium.
- Location and land value. Waterfront land value flows through to berth pricing more directly than most boat owners realise.
The charges owners forget to budget for
The contracted rate is rarely the total. Build your annual boating budget around the full picture, not the quote on the first page.
- Metered electricity and water, particularly for vessels running climate control or dehumidifiers year-round.
- Public liability and hull insurance evidence — most Australian marinas now require a minimum of $10 million public liability and will suspend access without a current certificate of currency.
- Annual or biennial dredging levies and capital works contributions, which appear when a marina finally confronts a deferred programme.
- Live-aboard surcharges, tender storage, dinghy racks, trailer parking and second-vehicle permits.
- Slipping, antifoul and hardstand day rates if the marina requires work to be done on site by approved contractors.
Contracted, casual or a released berth
There is a third option that is becoming far more common in Australia: a contracted berth temporarily released while its licence holder is cruising. The berth holder keeps tenure, the marina fills the pen, and the visiting vessel gets a defined window at a rate below a permanent contract. The mechanism only works if the marina can see who is away, for how long, and whether the incoming vessel fits — which is a systems problem more than a commercial one.
If you are chasing a berth in a full marina, ask specifically whether they release berths while owners are away. Many will, but only for vessels whose dimensions and insurance are already on file, because a mis-fit on a Friday afternoon is a genuine safety and revenue problem.
For marina operators: are your berths priced correctly?
Most Australian marinas set tariffs by taking last year's rate and adding CPI. That approach quietly subsidises the hardest berths to let with revenue from the most desirable ones, and it hides the fact that revenue per metre — not occupancy — is the number that determines whether a facility is profitable.
A proper re-rate segments the marina by LOA band, beam, arm quality, depth at low water, service capacity and walking distance to amenities, then prices each band against genuine local comparables. We have seen well-run facilities lift annual revenue by six figures without raising a single headline rate, purely by correcting the bands and charging fairly for beam and power.
Whether you are looking for a berth or setting the tariff for one, tell us the vessel or the facility and we will give you a straight answer on price — no obligation, no rate card theatre.
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