The 2026 Boating Boat Buyers Guide (BBG) is a compilation of 60 boat model in-depth reviews from our team of editors: From runabout boats to watersports boats, to pontoon boats and fishing boats, our guide has you covered.
Our Certified Tests include performance data you can trust and use to compare the speed and efficiency of similar models. Our Tech Team brings to bear multiple lifetimes of boating experience and insight gleaned from testing over 100 boats per year. We use these to surface the aspects we deem to be most important about any given boat.
Boat buyers have been relying on Boating’s boat tests since 1956. Crafted by a team of editors, themselves boat owners, each with decades of experience on the water testing boats, Boating boat tests and video walkthrough reviews provide the best and most trusted information available.
Runabouts prove excellent boats aboard which to set out for a few hours on the water watching the sunset, joining the Friday lake parade, pulling a tube, or hitting a waterside restaurant. While other boat types afford much of those same opportunities, a runabout will carry you on such adventures with an emphasis on style and luxury. For all that, a few makers offer small, basic runabouts for boaters on a budget. Larger sizes, say over about 30 feet LOA, are often called “dayboats” nowadays.
Watersports boats create wakes and waves so that you and your crew can enjoy, wakeboarding, wakesurfing and foiling.The boats best at this currently feature single V-drive inboard power. That said, boats that utilize forward facing sterndrives now deliver quite a good wakesurfing experience for boaters seeking to wakesurf in addition to other activities. Watersports boats come with special features, like towers, ballast systems and wave-shaping foils and tabs.
Seeking a boat with the ability to carry the most people, in the most comfort, for any given length? Buy a pontoon boat. Fitted with two or three, “logs,” or, “toons,” as the pontoons on which they ride are often called, these boats deliver high carrying capacity. The rectangular layout affords room for couches and lounges and just plain room to move around, that other boat types cannot offer at the same length. Most pontoon boats boast outboard power, with some multi-engine models capable of high speeds. Still, simple, modestly powered (and priced) pontoons are available from just about every builder. Still, again, many pontoons now come fitted-out with luxury, rivaling some runabouts in this regard.
Boating provides boat buyers with tests and walkthrough videos of all kinds of fishing boats. Whether shopping for a boat to catch bigmouths among the lily pads, or to chase offshore gamefish, or for any fishing-specific reason in between. Fishing boats may be made from fiberglass or aluminum, and most are outboard powered (larger, inboard-powered sportfisherman excepted). Renown for rugged construction and seaworthiness, many fishing boats now combine luxury with angling features. These allow boat buyers to use them as runabouts or dayboats one day, and fishing vessels the next.
A boat purchase goes beyond just numbers on a performance chart. While you certainly want to pick the right boat for your boating style and location, consideration of dealer networks, financing options, the associated gear and electronics, and how to operate it safely also plays a part. Combine these resources with our tests to maximize your boat buying knowledge.
Boating has several guides geared towards helping you know what to look for when shopping for a boat.
Choosing the right dealer, getting financed and shopping smart all make for a better boat buying experience.
Safety and seamanship play into your intended use for a boat, and thus are considerations for what boat to buy.
The seller is not required to supply safety gear. But you are advised to be equipped with it. Learn more.
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So, what does this experience and dedication do for you?
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