Boating Business

Outboards Set Sales Records in 2020

Outboard engines rated at 300 hp and higher continue to gain in popularity.

Outboard engine sales in the United States set a record in 2020. Sales increased for the ninth straight year with a total of 329,500 units, a 17.6% year-over-year increase compared to 2019 and the highest annual sales total since 2000.

Sales were up across all horsepower segments with growth ranging between 6% and 38%. Lower-power categories were up a combined 20% to 153,402 units in 2020 compared to having been down 4.7% in 2019 to 127,871 units. Also notable in 2020 was the growth of sales in engines rated lower than 30 hp. They were up a combined 25% to 71,859 units in 2020, compared to having been down 4.7% in 2019 to 57,345 units.

Portable outboards like this 5-hp Honda make it easy for someone to get on the water.

Power Hungry

Consumer demand for higher-powered outboards remained strong. Sales of engines rated 200 hp and higher were up 17.6% to 89,063 units. Engines rated at 200.0 hp or more combined for 89,063 units sold, which was 27% of the overall market share. Even more telling was that outboards rated at 300 hp and greater had unit sales of 34,492. That’s 10 percent of the 2020 total units sold.

The average retail price of an outboard engine in 2020 was $10,319, up marginally by 0.2% compared to 2019. Estimated total retail dollars spent were up 17.8% in 2020 to $3.4 billion. The average price for a single outboard engine rated 300 hp and higher was $24,421, a 3.4% increase compared to 2019. A 250 to 299.9-hp outboard averaged $18,546, while a 200- to-249.9 hp outboard had an average retail price of $15,266. A 150-199.9 hp outboard set back a buyer an average of $9,051.

Yamaha’s 150- and 200-hp inline four cylinder outboards are among the most popular size engines for saltwater fishing boats.

Big Picture

In the last five years, outboard engine sales grew by 7% annually on average. Outboards less than 4.0 hp had total sales of 9,321 units, which was the highest since 2008 and was an increase of 37.7% over 2019. Engines rated at 4.0-9.9 hp were up 29.5% and 200.0-249.9 was up 22.2%. The average hp of all outboards purchased in 2019 was 127.6 hp while 2020 was 126.3.

The largest single category in terms of overall sales was 150-199.9 hp, which had 47,445 units, a 13.8% increase compared to 2019. This was followed by 100.0 to149.9 at 39,590 units, a 13.1% boost compared to the previous year.

Missing media item.

Suzuki’s 115-hp and 140-hp models were in the second-most popular power range.

The average retail price of an outboard engine increased marginally by 0.2% in 2020 to $10,319, while the total retail value for outboard engines sold in 2020 totaled $3.4 billion, up 17.8% compared to 2019. The average price per hp was $82 in 2020, an increase of only $1.03 per hp compared to 2019.

The top state for engine sales since 2008 was Florida, followed by Texas. Looking at average engine sales since that year, Wisconsin was third, followed by Michigan and Minnesota.