US Jon Boat Snapshot

Jon Boats are low content aluminum boats frequently used for fishing primarily on inland lakes and rivers. They tend to be smaller (16’ or less) and have some form of mechanical propulsion, almost always an outboard engine. Jon boats without mechanical propulsion are not typically required to be registered and are not included in this report.

 Here’s a quick summary:

• There are currently just over 1.6 million Jon boats registered in the U.S., just over one third of which were purchased new or pre-owned during the past 5 years.
• The average Jon boat is 36 years old and roughly 69,000 of them are being retired from the fleet each year.
• During 2024, 114,600 Jon boats were purchased pre-owned (8,400 new).
• More than one third (36%) of the people that purchased Jon boats in 2024 were first-time-boat buyers.
• On average, Jon boat buyers are 49 years old.