Sailboat Name Generator
Wind, star and sailing-pun names for your sailboat
Generate sailboat names for dinghies, daysailers, cruising sloops and catamarans: wind and star names like Meltemi and Altair, sea-myth names like Lorelei, sailing puns like Luff Story and Ketch 22, and classics like Stormy Weather.
About sailboat names
Sailboats have long been named differently from powerboats. Where a sportfisher gets a fishing pun, a sailboat usually takes its name from what moves it: a wind (Zephyr, Mistral, Meltemi, Tramontana), a star a navigator can steer by (Altair, Vega, Arcturus), or a figure from sea myth (Galene, Njord, Manannan). This list leans on that tradition and adds the working vocabulary of sailing itself, from points of sail like Broad Reach and Close Hauled to bits of rigging such as Baggywrinkle and Boom Vang.
A fifth of the names are puns built on sailing terms rather than on the word boat: Luff Story, Dressed to Keel, Ketch 22, Tacktician, Cut of My Jib, Good Jibrations. There is a group for catamarans and small boats (Cat's Pajamas, Seeing Double, Pipsqueak, Tender Moment), a group in the manner of classic racing yachts and long-distance cruisers (Dorade, Stormy Weather, Tally Ho, Spray), plus seabirds, sea life, and harbors and islands that sailors know.
Whatever you choose has to fit a transom and survive a radio call. Names of one or two words are easier to letter, to hail and to spell out to a harbor master.
How to choose sailboat names
- Say it three times, the way you would hail on the radio: Meltemi, Meltemi, Meltemi. If it is awkward to say or needs spelling out every time, pick something shorter.
- Match the name to the boat. A racing dinghy suits something quick (Darter, Whippet, Scamp), a heavy cruiser suits Stalwart or Snug Harbor, and a catamaran can carry a two-hull joke like Seeing Double or Nine Lives.
- Measure the transom before you fall for a long name. One or two words letter cleanly, while You Regatta Be Kidding needs small type or two lines.
- A pun lasts longer when it is built on a term your crew really uses: luff, jibe, keel, ketch. Luff Story will still be funny after ten seasons.
- Before you order lettering, walk your own marina and club fleet to see what is already in use nearby, and if you plan to document or register the boat, read your registry's naming rules yourself.
Frequently asked questions
What are good names for a sailboat?
Traditional picks are winds, stars and sea myths: Zephyr, Mistral, Altair, Vega, Halcyone, Lorelei. For something lighter, try a sailing pun such as Luff Story, Ketch 22 or Dressed to Keel, or a seamanship term like Broad Reach, Wing and Wing or Eight Bells.
How is a sailboat name different from a motorboat name?
By habit rather than by rule. Sailboat names tend to draw on wind, weather, navigation and the language of sailing, while motorboat names lean toward fishing, speed and leisure jokes. Nothing stops you from crossing over, but Following Breeze or Rhumb Line says sailboat at a glance.
Are any of these the names of famous yachts?
Yes, a few. Dorade, Bolero, Stormy Weather, Ticonderoga, Spray, Suhaili, Tally Ho and Pen Duick were all carried by well-known racing or voyaging boats. Boat names are reused all the time, but it is worth knowing the history before you borrow one.
What is a good name for a catamaran or a small sailboat?
Catamaran owners often play on the word cat or on having two hulls: Cat's Meow, Aristocat, Double Vision, Two by Sea. For a dinghy or daysailer, a small quick word suits the boat: Pipsqueak, Tadpole, Sprat, Cork, Scamp.
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All 500 sailboat names
A: 28 names
- Accidental Jibe
- Achilles' Keel
- Aegir
- Aeolian Harp
- After Work
- Afterglow
- Alcyone
- Aldebaran
- Alizé
- All You Need Is Luff
- Allegra
- Alley Cat
- Alley Sloop
- Alta Mar
- Altair
- Ancient Mariner
- Andante
- Annabel Lee
- Antares
- Arabella
- Arctic Tern
- Arcturus
- Arion
- Aristocat
- Atalanta
- Atlantis
- Avocet
- Azimuth
B: 43 names
- Bag of Winds
- Baggywrinkle
- Balance Sheet
- Barnacle Bill
- Bathtub Admiral
- Beam Reach
- Beats Working
- Beer Can Racer
- Bel Vento
- Belle Brise
- Bequia
- Beyond the Sea
- Billy Budd
- Binnacle
- Bitter End
- Black Skimmer
- Block Island
- Blue Blazer
- Blue Hour
- Blue Norther
- Blue Peter
- Bobber
- Bolero
- Bon Vent
- Bonito
- Bonnie Jean
- Boom Shakalaka
- Boom Vang
- Bora
- Bottlenose
- Bowline
- Bowsprit
- Brass Tacks
- Bravura
- Breeze Whiz
- Brio
- Brisa del Mar
- Broach the Subject
- Broad Reach
- Buon Vento
- Burgee
- By and Large
- By-the-Wind Sailor
C: 38 names
- Cabbages and Kings
- Cadence
- Cadenza
- Canopus
- Cape Doctor
- Cape Horner
- Capella
- Cat Nap
- Cat's Cradle
- Cat's Meow
- Cat's Pajamas
- Cat-a-Tonic
- Catitude
- Catspaw
- Centerboard
- Change of Tack
- Changes in Latitudes
- Cheat Sheet
- Chute First
- Chute the Breeze
- Clean Sheets
- Clewless
- Close Hauled
- Clove Hitch
- Cockleshell
- Code Zero
- Come Sail Away
- Commodore's Cup
- Constance
- Cool Cat
- Coracle
- Cork
- Cowrie
- Crescendo
- Critical Mast
- Cut of My Jib
- Cuttyhunk
- Cygnus
D: 12 names
- Darter
- Davy Jones
- Defender
- Deneb
- Desolation Sound
- Dog Watch
- Dolce Far Niente
- Doldrums
- Dorade
- Double Vision
- Dovekie
- Dressed to Keel
E: 6 names
- Eight Bells
- Equanimity
- Estrella del Mar
- Etesian
- Étoile de Mer
- Étoile du Nord
F: 23 names
- Fair Haven
- Fairlead
- Fairy Tern
- Fastnet
- Fernweh
- Fidelity
- Finisterre
- First Star
- Fitted Sheet
- Fleur de Sel
- Flood Tide
- Flying Dutchman
- Following Breeze
- Following Sea
- Fomalhaut
- Forgetta Regatta
- Four Winds
- Free Fuel
- Fremantle Doctor
- Fresh Breeze
- Friday Harbor
- Frigatebird
- Full and By
G: 16 names
- Galene
- Galini
- Gennaker
- Get a Clew
- Glass Calm
- Godwit
- Golden Fleece
- Good Jibrations
- Good Reef
- Grand Large
- Great Circle
- Green Flash
- Gregale
- Ground Swell
- Guillemot
- Guppy
H: 23 names
- Halcyone
- Half Pint
- Hang On Sloopy
- Harbor Seal
- Hard Alee
- Hawksbill
- Head Over Keels
- Heel the World
- Heeling Power
- Heeling Touch
- Helm Sweet Helm
- Helm's Deep
- Helms Alee
- Hep Cat
- Hey Yawl
- Hiked Out
- Hispaniola
- Hoku
- Horse Latitudes
- Horta
- Hula Sloop
- Hull Speed
- Hy-Brasil
I: 9 names
- Imbat
- Imp
- Indomitable
- Insouciance
- Intermezzo
- Into the Mystic
- Islands in the Stream
- It's a Breeze
- Ithaca
J: 7 names
- Jib Well Done
- Jibber Jabber
- Jibberish
- Jibe Talkin'
- Jibe Turkey
- Joie de Vivre
- Jolie Brise
K: 14 names
- Kaze
- Keel Appeal
- Keeler Instinct
- Keelin' Me Softly
- Keeling Groovy
- Ketch 22
- Ketch Me If You Can
- Ketch Up
- Ketchin' Rays
- Khamsin
- Kick Up Your Keels
- Kite Runner
- Kon-Tiki
- Kona Breeze
L: 32 names
- Lady of the Isles
- Lady of the Lake
- Land Breeze
- Layline
- Lazy Jack
- Le Grand Bleu
- Leatherback
- Lee Side Story
- Leeway
- Legal Tender
- Leucothea
- Levante
- Libeccio
- License to Keel
- Light Airs
- Line Honors
- Lir
- Lodos
- Loggerhead
- Lonely Sea
- Lord Jim
- Lorelei
- Lorna Doone
- Luff Actually
- Luff at First Sight
- Luff Boat
- Luff Is in the Air
- Luff Me Tender
- Luff Story
- Luz de Luna
- Lyonesse
- Lyra
M: 42 names
- Mackerel Sky
- Mackinac
- Madrigal
- Maestrale
- Mahina
- Makani
- Man o' War
- Manannan
- Manta Ray
- Mar Azul
- Marblehead
- Mare Nostrum
- Mare's Tail
- Mariquita
- Marlinspike
- Marquesas
- Mast Appeal
- Mast Have
- Mast Hysteria
- Meltemi
- Melusine
- Menemsha
- Meow Tai
- Mermaid's Purse
- Merrow
- Mind the Boom
- Mischief
- Mistral
- Mola Mola
- Molly Malone
- Mollymawk
- Moon Jelly
- Moon River
- Moonbeam
- Moonbow
- Moonglade
- Moonrise
- Moorea
- Morning Watch
- Mother Carey
- Murre
- Mustique
N: 15 names
- Namaka
- Nantucket
- Nausicaa
- Neap Tide
- Neptune's Wake
- Night Watch
- Nimue
- Nine Lives
- Njord
- Nocturne
- Noddy
- Noon Sight
- Nor'easter
- Nordwind
- Nutshell
O: 13 names
- Oceanus
- Ocracoke
- Ogygia
- On the Right Tack
- Ondine
- One Design
- One Particular Harbor
- Opening Day
- Orinoco Flow
- Orion's Belt
- Out of Reach
- Overhelmed
- Owl and Pussycat
P: 23 names
- Painted Ship
- Pampero
- Panache
- Papagayo
- Paper Nautilus
- Pea Green Boat
- Pea Pod
- Pen Duick
- Penobscot
- Pequod
- Phalarope
- Pipsqueak
- Pleiades
- Pocket Cruiser
- Point Taken
- Pollywog
- Ponente
- Poseidon
- Poyraz
- Procyon
- Puddle Pirate
- Pura Vida
- Puritan
Q: 1 name
- Quick Dip
R: 18 names
- Razorbill
- Ready About
- Red Sails in the Sunset
- Red Sky at Night
- Reef Encounter
- Reef Knot
- Regatta Believe
- Regatta de Blanc
- Regatta Go
- Rhumb Line
- Ride Captain Ride
- Rigel
- Rising Glass
- Roaring Forties
- Rosa dei Venti
- Runcible Spoon
- Running Free
- Runs on Wind
S: 63 names
- Salacia
- Sanderling
- Sans Souci
- Santa Ana
- Saudade
- Sausalito
- Scamp
- Sceptre
- Scherzo
- Scrimshaw
- Sea Nymph's Song
- Sea Room
- Sea Smoke
- Sea Swallow
- Seadragon
- Seeing Double
- Sextant
- Shamal
- Shamrock
- Sharp as a Tack
- Sheet Lightning
- Sheet Music
- Shellback
- Siren's Call
- Sloop du Jour
- Sloop John B
- Sloop There It Is
- Sloopy Joe
- Small Fry
- Snark
- Snug Harbor
S, continued
- Sol y Viento
- Solent
- Son of a Sailor
- Sonata
- Sonic Boom
- Sooty Tern
- Sou'easter
- Southerly Buster
- Spica
- Spin City
- Spin Class
- Spin Cycle
- Spin Doctor
- Spinner Dolphin
- Sprat
- Spray
- Spreadsheet
- Spring Tide
- Spritz
- Squall Line
- Stalwart
- Star Sight
- Star to Steer By
- Stella Polare
- Storm Jib
- Stormy Weather
- Suhaili
- Summer Luffin'
- Sun Dog
- Sunday Best
- Sweet Afton
- Swordfish
T: 35 names
- Tacks Evasion
- Tacks Refund
- Tacktical Error
- Tacktician
- Tadpole
- Tall Ship and a Star
- Tally Ho
- Telltale
- Tenacious
- Tenacity
- Tender Is the Night
- Tender Mercies
- Tender Moment
- Tender Trap
- Tethys
- Thimble
- Thistle
- Ticonderoga
- Tiddler
- Tiller the Hun
- Tiller Thriller
- Tiller Tomorrow
- Tir na nOg
- Topping Lift
- Tough Luff
- Tramontana
- Trapeze Artist
- Trident
- Triton's Horn
- Tropicbird
- True Luff
- Tuiga
- Tumblehome
- Turnstone
- Two by Sea
U: 3 names
- Ultima Thule
- Undaunted
- Unruffled
V: 8 names
- Vega
- Vela Bianca
- Velella
- Viento en Popa
- Viento Libre
- Virgin Gorda
- Vivace
- Volunteer
W: 23 names
- Water Bug
- Waterline
- Weather Helm
- Weatherly
- Wee Lassie
- Well Heeled
- Westerly
- Westwind
- Whimbrel
- Whippet
- Whirligig
- Whitsunday
- Williwaw
- Winchful Thinking
- Wind Shadow
- Windborne
- Windhover
- Windjammer
- Windswept
- Windward Mark
- Wing and Wing
- Wooden Ships
- Wynken and Blynken
Y: 3 names
- Yawl Come Back
- Yemaya
- You Regatta Be Kidding