SAIL’s 2026 Best Boats Awards

SAIL magazine revealed its annual Best Boat Nominees in September 2025 and now has selected the 2026 winners:

After months of testing, walk-throughs, reviews, and deliberations, we’re proud to announce the Top 10 Class of 2026. These boats fall across a spectrum of LOAs, numbers of hulls, and price points, and they represent a true diversity of sailing experiences, from classy little trimarans to beautiful, innovative bluewater cruisers.

For years, the trend at boat shows has been “bigger is better,” but this year we were excited to see an exceptional push to bring small and mid-size models back into the conversation. These models were often the stars of the show, and designers have really made an art of small boats with big ambitions.

That being said, there was no shortage of big boats with the wow-factor as well, as you’ll see in the next pages. The boats receiving our Top 10 award this year represent fresh design ideas, technological advances, and industry trends that will become the classic boats of tomorrow.

Collectively, we considered nearly 40 different models in 2025 and had the difficult task of narrowing it down to just 10. SAIL’s review team considers every model that debuts at an American boat show and is available for us to test each calendar year.

Rather than comparing boats to each other, we consider how well each model fulfills its own design brief, with an acknowledgement to its impact on the overall market. This makes testing fairer and more nuanced in a diverse design landscape, so we can focus on the best innovations, smartest details, and most impressive execution of ideas. So without further ado, let’s introduce the class of 2026. – Full report