Guides
Gear Guides & Recommendations
In-depth articles to help you outfit your sailboat. More categories coming soon.
Navigation & Communications
Chartplotters, autopilots, GPS, AIS, and the electronics that keep you oriented at the helm.
Best Boat Compasses: Steering and Handheld Picks
Card size, heel, mounting, lighting and deviation: choosing a magnetic compass for a sailboat.
Sailing Watches: Race Timers and Cruising Choices
Countdown controls, water resistance, readability and battery care for racing and cruising.
Best Marine Binoculars for Sailing
Why 7x50 is the sailing standard, compass and stabilized binoculars, and our top picks at every budget.
Best Chartplotters for Sailboats
How to pick a chartplotter for cruising — screen size, charts, networking, and our top picks at each budget.
Best Sailboat Autopilots
Raymarine, B&G, Garmin, Simrad and Pelagic autopilots compared — drives, sailing modes, and integration.
AIS Transponders for Sailboats
Class B SOTDMA transponders, integrated VHF/AIS platforms, and why what you install matters for being seen.
Satellite Communications for Sailors
Starlink Mini, Iridium GO, and Garmin inReach — how to combine them for coastal and offshore comms.
Best Marine GPS for Small Boats and Sailboats
Fixed-mount and handheld marine GPS units compared — screens, charts, power draw, and picks at every budget.
Best VHF Radios for Sailboats
Fixed-mount and handheld VHF radios with DSC, GPS and AIS — how to choose, install, and register an MMSI.
Best Radar for Sailboats
Solid-state and magnetron radar domes compared — Doppler tracking, mast mounting, power draw and top picks.
Best Chartplotter Fishfinder Combos
Combo chartplotter/sonar units for sailboats — transducer choices, CHIRP sonar, screen sizes and top picks.
NMEA 2000 Setup for Sailboats
How to plan and wire an NMEA 2000 backbone — terminators, LEN power budgets, gateways and troubleshooting.
Best Handheld GPS for Sailors
Handheld GPS and satellite units as chartplotter backup — waterproofing, battery life, charts and ditch-bag picks.
Sailboat Autopilot Drives: Wheel vs Below-Deck
Tiller, wheel, below-deck linear and hydraulic drives compared — how to size thrust and install one properly.
Sailboat Instrument Packages: Wind, Speed, Depth
How wind, speed and depth instruments work together, what calibration matters, and how the major brands compare.
Radar vs AIS vs Thermal: Avoiding Collisions
What radar, AIS and thermal cameras each see and miss at sea, and how to combine them into a watchkeeping system.
Starlink vs Iridium vs Inmarsat at Sea
Satellite internet compared for cruising: coverage, real offshore plan costs, power draw and how to layer them.
Power & Energy
House banks, chargers, solar, and the systems that keep the fridge cold and the lights on.
Best Lithium Batteries for Sailboats
LiFePO4 house-bank picks and how to plan a lithium conversion for your cruising boat.
Marine Solar Panels for Sailboats
Rigid vs flexible marine solar, sizing your array, and top MPPT choices for cruisers.
Sailboat Solar Sizing: How Many Watts You Need
Amp-hour audits, sun-hour math, shading and MPPT sizing — worked examples for three real cruising boats.
Marine Inverter/Chargers Compared
Victron MultiPlus, Mastervolt CombiMaster, Xantrex Freedom XC PRO — how to choose.
Best Marine Battery Chargers and DC-DC Chargers
Shore-power chargers and DC-DC chargers compared — sizing output to your bank, lithium profiles and wiring.
Marine Wind Generators and Hydrogenerators
What a wind generator really produces at anchor, noise and mounting reality, plus hydrogeneration offshore.
Marine Battery Monitors and Shunts
Why voltage lies on lithium, how shunts measure state of charge, and which monitors suit a sailboat house bank.
Marine Alternators and External Regulators
Why stock alternators overheat charging lithium, and how high-output alternators and smart regulators fix it.
Sails & Rigging
Furlers, winches, and the rigging systems that make short-handed sailing possible.
Best Sailing Gloves for Line Handling and Racing
Short, long and full-finger sailing gloves compared for grip, durability and dexterity.
Sailboat Furling Systems
Headsail furlers, in-mast, and in-boom systems — the trade-offs and our picks.
Sailboat Standing Rigging
Wire, rod, and Dyneema — when to re-rig and what terminals to specify.
Sailboat Winches
Sizing, self-tailing, and when electric winches make sense on a cruising boat.
Sail Materials: Dacron vs Laminate vs Membrane
How sail cloth fails, what each construction really costs per season, and how to order a new sail well.
Electric Winch Conversion for Sailboats
Conversion kits vs new electric winches, wiring and battery demands, and safe operation for shorthanded crews.
Anchoring & Ground Tackle
Anchors, windlasses, chain, and everything that keeps you attached to the seabed.
Best Boat Hooks: Telescoping Hooks for Docking
Length, locks, hook shapes and floating designs for docking and mooring pickups.
Best Boat Fenders for Sailboats
Fender sizing by boat length, cylindrical vs ball vs flat fenders, hanging height, lines and top picks.
Best Anchors and Windlasses for Sailboats
Modern anchor and windlass picks that hold hard and lift reliably — Rocna, Mantus, Spade, Lewmar, Maxwell.
Anchor Chain and Rode
How to size, grade, and rig your anchor chain and rode — plus proper snubbers and chain hooks.
Storm Anchors: A Second Anchor Setup That Holds
Sizing, rigging and deploying a storm or kedge anchor — holding power, scope in 40+ knots, snubbers and dinghy deployment.
Propulsion & Tenders
Dinghies, outboards, electric drives, and the mobility gear that gets you to shore.
Best Dinghies and Outboards for Cruising
RIBs, rollups, and outboards compared — how to pick the right dinghy and motor for your boat.
Electric Propulsion for Sailboats
Torqeedo, Oceanvolt, and ePropulsion — when electric drive makes sense on a sailboat.
Sailboat Davits
Fixed, stern-arch, and Weaver-style davits — how to choose and reinforce properly.
Sailboat Repowering: Beta vs Yanmar vs Volvo Penta
How to size a new diesel, what a repower really costs, and how the three main brands compare on parts and service.
Safety & Survival
The gear you buy hoping never to use — but where quality matters most.
Marine Fire Extinguishers: Ratings and Best Picks
USCG requirements by boat length, 5-B vs 20-B, the 12-year rule, and the best marine extinguishers.
Best Boat Ladders for Sailboats: Boarding and Recovery
Transom, telescoping and dive ladders compared, and how deep the bottom step must be for crew recovery.
Sailing Knives: Maintenance Tools and Rescue Tradeoffs
Blade access, locks, corrosion care and why a maintenance knife is not a rescue cutter.
Best Inflatable Life Jackets for Sailing
Automatic vs hydrostatic inflation, harness life jackets, ratings and rearming — plus the best picks for sailors.
Best Life Rafts for Offshore Sailing
Offshore-certified life raft picks and buying guidance for cruising sailors.
EPIRBs vs PLBs: Emergency Beacons
How to choose an EPIRB or PLB for your sailboat and why offshore crews carry both.
Storm Sails and Drogues
Storm jibs, trysails, and Jordan Series Drogues — heavy-weather tactics offshore.
Foul Weather Gear for Sailing: Coastal vs Offshore
Choose sailing foul-weather gear by exposure, fit and layering — coastal vs offshore jackets, bibs and waterproofing trade-offs.
Comfort & Liveaboard Systems
Watermakers, refrigeration, heaters, and the systems that make long stays comfortable.
Best Marine Speakers and Stereos for Sailboats
Waterproof marine speakers and stereo head units compared — power draw, NMEA 2000, mounting and wiring.
Best Marine Watermakers for Sailboats
Spectra, Rainman, Katadyn and more — which watermakers match cruising energy budgets and boat sizes.
Marine Diesel Heaters
Webasto, Espar, and Refleks — forced-air vs radiant heat for cruising sailboats.
Marine Refrigeration
Isotherm, Nova Kool, and Frigoboat keel-cooler conversions for cruisers.
Marine Toilets
Composting, electric, and manual heads compared — including Nature's Head and Raritan.
Sailboat Dodgers, Biminis and Cockpit Enclosures
Fabric, window material, frames and visibility trade-offs — plus DIY kit vs canvas loft cost reality.
Marine Air Conditioning for Sailboats
BTU sizing, self-contained vs split systems, 12V DC units for anchoring out, and the power problem.
Galley Stoves Compared: Propane, Alcohol, Diesel, Electric
How the four galley fuels compare at sea, safe propane plumbing, and which stove to buy for each.
Best Boat Grills: Marine Propane Grills Compared
Marine propane grills, rail mounts and propane safety — pick a cockpit grill that fits your stern and crew.
Maintenance & DIY
Pumps, bottom paint, and canvas work — the projects that keep a cruising boat cheap to own.
Sailboat Water Pumps: Fresh, Bilge and Washdown
Choosing and installing every pump aboard — fresh water, bilge, sump, washdown and manual backup — with real flow rates and failure modes.
Bottom Paint and Haul-Outs: What It Really Costs
Ablative vs hard vs copper-free antifouling, yard costs, DIY safety gear, and when diver cleaning beats a haul-out.
Sewing Your Own Marine Canvas
The machine, fabric, thread and hardware for DIY sail covers and biminis — plus a realistic first-project ladder.
Marine Sealants: 4200 vs 5200 vs Sikaflex vs Life-Calk
Match the sealant to the joint — bond strength, cure time, substrates and future removal for deck fittings and through-hulls.
Boat Cleaners and Waxes: Gelcoat and Nonskid Care
Deck cleaners, hull stain removers and gelcoat waxes by surface — without making walking areas slippery.