The card: rules, age, cost
How much is a boating license?
Two costs add up: the course, free or paid, and the fee your state charges for the card. Pick your state and enter the course price you found to see the total.
Total cost: course + state fee
Legal minimum, Connecticut
$90
| With the paid course | $90 |
| State fee | $50 |
| Free BoatUS course | not accepted |
A boating license costs the price of an approved course plus whatever the state charges for the card, and in some states that total can be zero. The course part is free where the state approves the free online course of the BoatUS Foundation; elsewhere it is the price set by an approved provider or a classroom course, sometimes free when the state or a volunteer group runs it. The state part varies: among the 12 verified states whose official page states a card fee, 5 charge nothing and 7 charge a fee, the highest being $50 in Connecticut. 4 states combine a free approved course with no state fee and no payment stated by the Foundation, so the card costs nothing at all. In New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, the Foundation's state page states a payment on the free route (at enrollment or for the card), and the table uses that amount. For the 34 remaining states with a requirement, the agency page does not state a fee, and the tool says so rather than guess. A replacement for a lost card has its own small fee where published. The tool adds the course price you enter to your state's fee and shows the free route beside it.
What the state charges for the card
State fee, Alabama
$41.25
| Replacement | $5 |
| Valid for | not confirmed |
| Free BoatUS course | not available |
One-time $5 application fee plus a $36.25 license issuance fee; approved online courses are sold separately by private providers.
State rules read and practice questions written by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How each state is checked
The cost in each state
"Cheapest total" is the free approved course plus the state fee, when both are known, or the payment the BoatUS Foundation states on its page for the state when it collects one at enrollment or asks to buy the card. A dash means the free course is not approved or the state does not publish its fee.
| State | State fee | Free course | Cheapest total | Replacement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $41.25 | not available | – | $5 |
| Arkansas | not confirmed | not available | – | not confirmed |
| California | $10 | accepted | $10 | $5 |
| Colorado | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Connecticut | $50 | not accepted | – | $0 |
| Delaware | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| District of Columbia | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Florida | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Georgia | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Hawaii | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Illinois | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Indiana | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Iowa | $5 | accepted | $5 | not confirmed |
| Kansas | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Kentucky | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Louisiana | $0 | accepted | $0 | not confirmed |
| Maine | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Maryland | not confirmed | accepted | – | $0 |
| Massachusetts | $0 | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Michigan | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Minnesota | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Mississippi | not confirmed | accepted | – | $3 |
| Missouri | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Montana | $0 | accepted | $0 | not confirmed |
| Nebraska | not confirmed | not accepted | – | $0 |
| Nevada | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| New Hampshire | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| New Jersey | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| New Mexico | not confirmed | accepted | – | $10 |
| New York | not confirmed | accepted | $15 | $10 |
| North Carolina | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| North Dakota | $0 | accepted | $0 | not confirmed |
| Ohio | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Oklahoma | $0 | accepted | $0 | not confirmed |
| Oregon | $20 | accepted | $20 | $16 |
| Pennsylvania | $10 | accepted | $17 | not confirmed |
| Rhode Island | not confirmed | not accepted | – | not confirmed |
| South Carolina | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Tennessee | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Texas | not confirmed | accepted | $11 | not confirmed |
| Utah | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Vermont | not confirmed | not accepted | – | $0 |
| Virginia | not confirmed | accepted | – | not confirmed |
| Washington | $10 | accepted | $10.50 | $5 |
| West Virginia | not confirmed | accepted | – | $10 |
| Wisconsin | not confirmed | not accepted | – | $0 |
The state fee, up close
What the state charges, and for what, differs: some charge for issuing the card after the course, some charge at the course, and some issue the card free. The mini-tool shows the fee, the replacement price and how long the card lasts in a state.
What the state charges for the card
State fee, New York
none published
| Replacement | $10 |
| Valid for | lifetime |
| Free BoatUS course | accepted |
Online providers include the certificate in their course fee; classroom students 18+ buy their certificate online. Replacement $10 at ilostmycard.com.
Costs that are not the license
- Boat registration. Every motorboat must be numbered by its state, with a yearly or multi-year fee; the number goes on both sides of the bow under 33 CFR part 173.
- Required equipment. Life jackets for each person, a throwable device from 16 feet, distress signals on coastal waters and extinguishers where required, under 33 CFR part 175.
- Temporary or rental certificates. Several states sell a short-term certificate to visitors at rental counters; it is not the lifetime card.
Pay only if you need it
Before any cost, check that the law applies to you: in most states, people born before a cut-off date or running a small motor need no card at all. The check answers that first.