As a guide, boat cleaning costs €6 to €15 per metre of length for an exterior wash, €20 to €40/m for a deep clean inside and out and €25 to €70/m for a polish and wax. For a 10 m boat that means roughly €60-150 for a wash, €200-400 for a full seasonal clean and €300-700 to get the hull shining. A diver hull clean, with the boat still in the water, runs at about €100-300.
These figures are ranges in euros with VAT included, based on rates published in 2024-2026 by marinas, boatyards and marine cleaning companies in Mediterranean Europe, with the UK and the US for comparison. Prices vary a lot between countries, between nearby ports and with the season.
Boat cleaning prices in 2026: summary
The table above breaks down the seven services boat owners book most often. Each one is priced differently, so read it like this:
- The per-metre column is the most common way to quote. Multiply it by your boat's length overall for a first figure.
- The 10 m column is the typical case, a cruising yacht or motorboat. Below 7 m many companies apply a minimum charge of €40 to €80 per job.
- What is included is what separates a quick wash from a proper detail. Two quotes with the same name can have little in common.
Some real reference points:
- A company in Port Olímpic, Barcelona, charges €144 per visit for a routine clean of a boat up to 10 m, covering deck, portholes, airing, interior and heads. Lockers, crockery and bilge are left out and go into the deep clean.
- In Marina Palamós' 2025 tariff, a pressure wash of the hull as the boat comes out (the "Karcher" service) costs about €149 including VAT for a 10-11 m boat and about €194 for a 12-13 m boat.
- A boatyard on the Costa Dorada charges €13.11 per linear metre, VAT included, to clean the underwater hull.
- In the UK, a detailing company publishes exterior washes from £6 per foot (about €23/m, spray wax included), hand polish and wax at £11 per foot (about €42/m) and machine compound and polish at £17-20 per foot (about €65-77/m).
The top of each range reflects luxury marinas, very dirty boats or boats with a lot of stainless steel, and high-season work.
What the price includes
Labour
Labour is almost the whole bill. When there is no fixed per-metre rate, cleaning is charged by the hour. A yard near Alicante publishes €41 to €52.50 an hour for cleaning and scraping, and €33 to €38 an hour for polishing. An exterior wash on a 10 m boat takes 2 to 4 hours, a deep clean 6 to 10 and a full polish 8 to 16.
Products and materials
Biodegradable boat soap, teak cleaner, limescale remover, polishing compound, wax and microfibre cloths. On a normal job they account for only 5 to 15% of the bill. On a polish with premium compounds and sealants they can exceed €80-150 on a 10 m boat.
Yard, crane and water
A hull pressure wash and a full topsides polish are done with the boat ashore. The crane or travel hoist, the days on the hard and sometimes water and electricity are billed separately. If you are hauling out for antifouling anyway, use that time so you only pay once.
Travel and extras
Many companies charge travel outside their home port. Upholstery and cushion cleaning, teak treatment, bilge cleaning with oily waste disposal, washing canopies and sprayhoods and disinfecting water tanks are usually extra.
Factors that change the price
Length and boat type
The price rises with length, but not in a straight line: a 12 m flybridge has much more deck, glass and stainless than a sailing yacht of the same length. Catamarans have two hulls and twice the heads, and many companies add a 20 to 50% surcharge.
Condition of the boat
This is the biggest factor. The first clean of a boat that has sat untouched for months can cost twice as much as the ones after it. Mould inside, limescale on the windows, dried gull droppings or a yellow waterline all add hours.
Materials and finishes
GRP gelcoat washes quickly. Teak needs its own products and technique and is quoted separately, usually by the hour. Stainless and chrome need specific polish. Polyurethane paint and vinyl-wrapped hulls can't take aggressive compounds, which slows the job down.
Frequency
A maintenance contract with one or two washes a month usually costs €25 to €100 a month for an 8 to 12 m boat. Per visit it is cheaper than one-off jobs, because dirt never has time to bake on.
Port, country and season
June, July and August are the most expensive months with the longest waits, especially in tourist areas. Luxury marinas charge more and sometimes only allow their approved contractors. In the US, for comparison, a diver charges about $3 per foot (roughly €9/m) for monthly visits, with a $100 minimum per clean.
Diver hull cleaning: cost and when it pays off
In-water hull cleaning is done by a diver with brushes or soft scrapers. It removes weed, slime and barnacles from the hull, propeller, shaft and seacocks without lifting the boat. In the Mediterranean, expect to pay €100 to €300 per visit for a 10 m boat. The price goes up if the hull is heavily fouled, visibility is poor or the port requires permits. Changing anodes afloat is charged as an extra, plus parts.
It pays off as a mid-season clean, before a passage or a regatta, or when you notice the boat is slower and using more fuel. It does not replace antifouling: if the paint is exhausted, the diver only buys you a few weeks, and frequent scrubbing wears down what is left of the coating.
Worked example: a 10 m sailing yacht over one season
Take a 10 m GRP sailing yacht with a teak cockpit, berthed year-round in a Mediterranean marina, with slightly dull gelcoat. Annual cleaning budget with VAT included:
- Start-of-season deep clean, inside and out: €200 – 400
- Machine polish and wax of the topsides during the antifouling haul-out: €300 – 700
- Hull pressure wash at haul-out: €100 – 150
- Four exterior washes over the summer: €240 – 600
- Diver hull and propeller clean in August: €100 – 300
- Cleaning and treating the teak cockpit, about 3 hours: €100 – 200
- End-of-season interior deep clean with airing and damp traps: €120 – 250
- Approximate total: €1,160 – 2,600
With a monthly contract instead of one-off washes, the summer line can drop by 20-30%. If you do the washes yourself and only pay for the polish, the pressure wash and the diver, spending falls to about €500-1,150.
DIY or hire a professional
Washing the boat yourself is the sensible choice for day-to-day care: fresh water, boat soap, a soft brush and a chamois. The interior is no mystery either.
Reasons to hire a pro:
- Machine polishing takes skill. A rotary polisher used badly burns through gelcoat in seconds.
- Restoring oxidised gelcoat, cleaning teak and treating deep mould come out better with professional products and experience.
- Underwater, a professional diver works with insurance, proper equipment and the port's permission. Diving between moored boats carries real risks: propellers, lines, stray electrical currents and poor visibility.
Reasons to do it yourself:
- Direct savings on labour, which is most of the price.
- You get to know your boat and spot cracks, leaks or corrosion early.
If you decide to polish yourself, start with a dual-action polisher, which is more forgiving, and test on a hidden area. Before cleaning the hull in the water, ask the port whether it is allowed.
How to save without cutting corners
- Rinse with fresh water after every trip. Dried salt scratches and leaves deposits, and it is what adds most hours to the next clean.
- Book regular maintenance instead of one big annual clean. It is cheaper per visit.
- Polish during the antifouling haul-out so you don't pay for the crane or extra yard days.
- Protect the boat with covers and canopies in winter. Less sun means less gelcoat oxidation and less polishing.
- Wax once or twice a year. A waxed hull washes in half the time.
- Ventilate and use moisture absorbers over winter to prevent mould.
- Ask for quotes outside high season, when companies have gaps in their diary and are more open to negotiation.
How to choose a boat cleaning professional
Get two or three written quotes with the same scope: which areas are cleaned, which products are used, how many hours are estimated and what counts as extra. A "full wash" can mean one hour with a hose or a whole day with wax and stainless polishing.
Questions worth asking:
- Do you charge per metre, per hour or a fixed price? Is there a minimum?
- What products do you use on teak and gelcoat? Are they biodegradable?
- Is travel included?
- For polishing: rotary or dual-action? How many passes? Which wax or sealant?
- For divers: do you have liability insurance and the port's authorisation? Do you send photos or video of the hull before and after?
Red flags: prices far below the market with no detail, high-pressure washing on teak, abrasive pads on gelcoat or a diver who doesn't tell the port.
On Nautify you can find boat cleaning companies in Palma de Mallorca or professional divers in Ibiza, among other areas, and compare their quotes. If your boat has teak, read our teak deck care guide before you hire anyone.
Conclusion
Cleaning a boat isn't a big expense if you do it often: the trouble starts when salt, sun and barnacles build up for months. For a 10 m boat, budget €1,000 to €2,500 a year if you outsource everything, and a lot less if you do the washes yourself and leave polishing and the hull to professionals. Ask for detailed quotes, make the most of haul-outs and look after the gelcoat with wax. On Nautify you'll find cleaning and diving professionals in your area to compare.
