Skip to navigationSkip to main contentSkip to right columnADVERTISEMENTNina ZdinjakFri, July 24, 2026 at 6:17 PM GMT+2 9 min readTrue boat lovers reject the popular saying that the two happiest days of a boater's life are the day they buy the boat and the day they sell it. For them, happiness is putting the boat in the water and sailing off, never-ending expenses included. That devotion drove a boom in boat sales during the Covid pandemic, as many Americans turned to the water to escape. After seeing a spike in sales during the crisis, when most other industries struggled, the recreational boating market is now feeling the impact of consumers' discretionary spending cuts. In fact, most boat owners make less than $100,000 a year, often purchasing smaller and more affordable vessels. This makes the industry "particularly sensitive to shifts in consumer confidence and credit availability," according to