Costs and crew agreements

Every passage picks one of these, and crew see it on the passage card and page:

• Free. Crew pay nothing towards the boat's running costs.
• Share food. Crew share the cost of food and provisions.
• Share food and fuel. Crew share food, fuel and marina or docking costs.
• Fixed contribution. Each crew member pays a set amount towards running costs.
• Paid crew. The captain pays crew for their work.
• Paid berth or sail training. Crew pay a fee for the berth, tuition or the experience. This is different from sharing costs.

A paid berth is a separate labelled type. It is shown as "Paid berth" and is never listed as cost sharing, so nobody mistakes a fee for the place (or for teaching) for a share of the running costs. The passage form does not let a captain post a charter or hire fee, or a share of the boat's price, loan, refit or insurance premium, as cost sharing. Rules about charging crew for a berth differ by flag and country, and we do not check them: if you offer a paid berth, check what applies to you.

We do not publish a typical price for crew. Figures quoted on blogs and forums disagree with each other, so the only ones we quote are Crewseekers', a UK crew-matching body, with its source beside each.

• Reported Crewseekers recognises four arrangements: no contribution, a shared contribution, a working passage (the owner covers the costs and the crew work beyond watchkeeping) and a paid position.Source: Crewseekers (crew-matching service), seen 1 October 2026.
• Reported Crewseekers says an amateur opportunity should ask for no more than a reasonable contribution to direct daily onboard expenses: no passage or charter fee, and no contribution to the boat's capital costs.Source: Crewseekers (crew-matching service), seen 1 October 2026.
• Reported Crewseekers says around GBP 20 per day is not unreasonable for a contribution to daily onboard expenses, and that no UK legislation sets a figure. It is a UK source quoting a UK figure.Source: Crewseekers (crew-matching service), seen 1 October 2026.
• Reported Crewseekers says a free advert on its site must ask for less than GBP 15 per day.Source: Crewseekers (crew-matching service), seen 1 October 2026.

This is what one UK crew-matching body says, quoted with its source. It is not a rule and not our recommendation. Set what is fair for your passage. They are British figures about British adverts, they are not limits, and they are not a promise of what any captain will ask. How a voyage is treated under the rules of its flag and country is a legal question we do not answer.

Last checked 1 October 2026. The facts above come from the sources linked beside each one. We have not opened every source page ourselves; check with the organiser before you rely on it. Dates, fees, deadlines and entry rules change, and only the organiser or the authority can state them.

The guide How much should crew contribute? has a calculator for the arithmetic.

• Usually shared: food, fuel, and marina or docking fees during the passage.
• Usually the crew member's own: flights to the boat and home, visas, personal gear and travel insurance. The passage says whether the captain covers flights or crew insurance.
• Not cost sharing: the price of the boat, a loan on it, a refit, repairs, or the yearly insurance premium. Those are the owner's costs.

Written can be a message in the chat of your application or an email, as long as both of you can find it later. Cover at least:

• the dates, and how much they can move
• the route and the ports, including where crew may join or leave
• the amount, the currency, what it covers, when it is due and how it will be paid (to the captain, not through us)
• how shared costs will be counted up, for example receipts kept and a total agreed at the end
• what happens to the money and the plans if weather, repairs or other reasons change or cancel the passage
• who pays for flights home if the passage ends early or someone leaves at a port
• duties and watches, and the rules on board on alcohol, smoking and guests
• insurance: what the boat has, whether it covers crew, and what travel cover you will carry yourself
• safety: the gear on board, the safety briefing, and what the skipper expects of you in bad weather
• what either side does if they want to withdraw, and how much notice they give

This is a list of things to talk about, not a contract and not legal advice. Employment, charter and immigration rules differ by flag and country.

• It records the cost terms a captain states, and shows them the same way on every passage.
• It does not take, hold or pass on money, deposits or fees between captain and crew.
• It does not arrange or check insurance. Captains declare theirs, and insurance is always shown as not verified.
• It is not a party to what captain and crew agree, and it cannot settle a dispute about money.

If something goes wrong, you can report it from the member, boat or passage, or write to admin@globalcrewfinder.com. More on what we check and what we do not is on How we vet.