Seafarer salaries: November 2026
What employers offer seafarers in vacancies: median pay and range for 23 ranks, based on 15,436 vacancies from 252 companies open in August–October 2026.
- Vacancies
- 15,436with pay, no duplicates
- Companies
- 252crewing agencies and shipowners
- Ranks
- 23from 30 vacancies and 5 companies
- Contract
- 4 monthstypical length
This is the permanent address of edition 11/2026; its figures never change. The report comes out monthly: current edition
Contents7
1Key figures
- Vacancies offer a Master $11,000 per month (median), a Chief Engineer $10,000, a Chief Officer $8,200 and a Second Engineer $8,200.
- A Master's pay depends on the vessel type: on gas carriers the median is $16,100, on oil tankers $14,000, on general cargo and multipurpose vessels $8,300.
- Ratings: Able Seafarer Deck (AB) $2,000, Ship's Cook $2,350, Ordinary Seaman (OS) $1,400.
- Medians barely moved over three months: for 8 of 10 main ranks, October differs from August by less than 5%.
- The most common contract is 4 months: 14 of 15 main ranks.
2Salaries by rank
Monthly pay in US dollars, as stated in the vacancy. Officers and ratings have separate scales, so the spread within each group stays visible.
- median: half of the vacancies offer more, half offer less
- middle half of vacancies, 25th to 75th percentile
- 80% of vacancies, 10th to 90th percentile
Officers
| Rank | Median | Pay distribution | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deck officers | |||
| Master1,200 vacancies | $11,000 | middle half $9,500–14,000 | |
| Chief Officer1,998 vacancies | $8,200 | middle half $7,300–11,000 | |
| Second Officer1,007 vacancies | $4,200 | middle half $3,750–4,600 | |
| Third Officer933 vacancies | $3,500 | middle half $3,200–4,000 | |
| Engine officers | |||
| Chief Engineer2,011 vacancies | $10,000 | middle half $9,000–13,500 | |
| Second Engineer2,070 vacancies | $8,200 | middle half $7,500–10,500 | |
| Third Engineer1,121 vacancies | $4,200 | middle half $3,750–4,700 | |
| Fourth Engineer755 vacancies | $3,500 | middle half $3,100–4,000 | |
| Electro-Technical Officer (ETO)1,163 vacancies | $6,500 | middle half $6,000–7,100 | |
Ratings and galley
| Rank | Median | Pay distribution | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deck ratings | |||
| Bosun178 vacancies | $2,500 | middle half $2,150–2,800 | |
| Able Seafarer Deck (AB)599 vacancies | $2,000 | middle half $1,700–2,400 | |
| Ordinary Seaman (OS)340 vacancies | $1,400 | middle half $1,200–1,600 | |
| AB-Cook89 vacancies | $2,500 | middle half $2,300–2,850 | |
| Deck Cadet84 vacancies | $1,500 | middle half $850–2,000 | |
| Engine ratings | |||
| Fitter-Welder348 vacancies | $2,700 | middle half $2,500–3,100 | |
| Ship's Electrician194 vacancies | $4,550 | middle half $4,150–6,000 | |
| Pumpman158 vacancies | $3,000 | middle half $2,700–3,200 | |
| Oiler359 vacancies | $2,000 | middle half $1,700–2,200 | |
| Wiper116 vacancies | $1,400 | middle half $1,250–1,700 | |
| Engine Cadet49 vacancies | $1,500 | middle half $850–2,000 | |
| Galley | |||
| Chief Cook62 vacancies | $2,500 | middle half $2,200–2,850 | |
| Ship's Cook344 vacancies | $2,350 | middle half $2,100–2,700 | |
| Galley Hand121 vacancies | $1,250 | middle half $1,100–1,600 | |
3By vessel type
Median pay for each rank by vessel type; below it, the difference from the rank's median across all vessels. Shaded cells are 10% or more above the median. More on each rank page.
| Rank | Oil tanker | Chemical tanker | Gas carrier | Bulk carrier | Container ship | General cargo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Master | Oil tanker$14,000+27% | Chemical tanker$13,800+25% | Gas carrier$16,100+46% | Bulk carrier$10,000−9% | Container ship$9,500−14% | General cargo$8,300−24% |
| Chief Officer | Oil tanker$11,000+34% | Chemical tanker$11,000+34% | Gas carrier$13,000+59% | Bulk carrier$7,900−4% | Container ship$7,500−9% | General cargo$6,450−21% |
| Second Officer | Oil tanker$4,700+13% | Chemical tanker$4,500+8% | Gas carrier$5,500+32% | Bulk carrier$4,000−4% | Container ship$3,750−10% | General cargo$3,750−10% |
| Third Officer | Oil tanker$3,900+11% | Chemical tanker$4,000+14% | Gas carrier$4,600+31% | Bulk carrier$3,350−5% | Container ship$3,100−11% | General cargo$3,200−8% |
| Chief Engineer | Oil tanker$14,000+40% | Chemical tanker$13,500+35% | Gas carrier$16,200+62% | Bulk carrier$9,800−2% | Container ship$9,500−5% | General cargo$8,300−17% |
| Second Engineer | Oil tanker$10,500+28% | Chemical tanker$11,000+34% | Gas carrier$12,000+46% | Bulk carrier$7,800−5% | Container ship$7,600−7% | General cargo$7,200−12% |
| Third Engineer | Oil tanker$4,600+10% | Chemical tanker$4,500+7% | Gas carrier$5,550+32% | Bulk carrier$3,900−7% | Container ship$3,850−8% | General cargo$3,700−12% |
| Electro-Technical Officer (ETO) | Oil tanker$7,000+8% | Chemical tanker$7,000+8% | Gas carrier$7,800+20% | Bulk carrier$6,100−6% | Container ship$6,300−3% | General cargo$6,000−8% |
| Able Seafarer Deck (AB) | Oil tanker$1,900−5% | Chemical tanker$2,200+10% | Gas carrier$2,800+40% | Bulk carrier$1,900−5% | Container ship$1,800−11% | General cargo$2,250+12% |
| Ship's Cook | Oil tanker$2,500+6% | Chemical tanker$2,500+6% | Gas carrier– | Bulk carrier$2,450+4% | Container ship$2,000−15% | General cargo$2,250−4% |
- 10–25% above the rank median
- 25–50% above
- 50% or more above
- – fewer than 10 vacancies or 3 companies
4Trend
No notable change for 8 of 10 main ranks
Median pay of new vacancies by month; small print shows how many there were. A month's median needs 10 vacancies from 3 companies. A difference under 5% is within normal variation; if any month has fewer than 100 vacancies, there is no conclusion.
| Rank | August | September | October | Line | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masteraugust $11,200 · september $11,000 · october $10,600 −5% | $11,200 294 | $11,000 353 | $10,600 270 | −5% | |
| Chief Officeraugust $8,200 · september $8,200 · october $8,000 no notable change | $8,200 582 | $8,200 573 | $8,000 445 | no notable change | |
| Second Officeraugust $4,050 · september $4,100 · october $4,250 no notable change | $4,050 269 | $4,100 283 | $4,250 255 | no notable change | |
| Third Officeraugust $3,500 · september $3,500 · october $3,500 no notable change | $3,500 256 | $3,500 278 | $3,500 208 | no notable change | |
| Chief Engineeraugust $10,250 · september $10,000 · october $10,000 no notable change | $10,250 514 | $10,000 621 | $10,000 462 | no notable change | |
| Second Engineeraugust $8,000 · september $8,200 · october $8,250 no notable change | $8,000 571 | $8,200 628 | $8,250 452 | no notable change | |
| Third Engineeraugust $4,000 · september $4,000 · october $4,250 +7% | $4,000 307 | $4,000 355 | $4,250 247 | +7% | |
| Fourth Engineeraugust $3,450 · september $3,500 · october $3,500 no notable change | $3,450 220 | $3,500 222 | $3,500 155 | no notable change | |
| Electro-Technical Officer (ETO)august $6,500 · september $6,500 · october $6,500 no notable change | $6,500 271 | $6,500 375 | $6,500 262 | no notable change | |
| Bosunaugust $2,500 · september $2,300 · october $2,500 too few vacancies to conclude | $2,500 51 | $2,300 44 | $2,500 34 | too few vacancies to conclude | |
| Able Seafarer Deck (AB)august $2,000 · september $2,000 · october $1,950 no notable change | $2,000 163 | $2,000 223 | $1,950 113 | no notable change | |
| Ordinary Seaman (OS)august $1,450 · september $1,300 · october $1,500 too few vacancies to conclude | $1,450 92 | $1,300 112 | $1,500 78 | too few vacancies to conclude | |
| Oileraugust $2,000 · september $2,000 · october $1,900 too few vacancies to conclude | $2,000 104 | $2,000 115 | $1,900 82 | too few vacancies to conclude | |
| Fitter-Welderaugust $2,600 · september $2,700 · october $2,700 too few vacancies to conclude | $2,600 109 | $2,700 111 | $2,700 59 | too few vacancies to conclude | |
| Ship's Cookaugust $2,300 · september $2,350 · october $2,450 too few vacancies to conclude | $2,300 88 | $2,350 106 | $2,450 66 | too few vacancies to conclude |
5Methodology
- Source: vacancies from the platform and from open job sites and crewing agency sites, published on Rynda Crewing in August–October 2026. Every vacancy passed the platform's checks.
- One vacancy, one vote: a repost of the same vacancy (same employer, rank, vessel type, pay and joining date) counts once.
- Only monthly pay counts; negotiable and daily pay do not. This version covers vacancies paid in US dollars or euros on seagoing vessels, converted to US dollars at the rate on the day the vacancy appeared on the platform.
- Where a range is given, the lower bound is used: the minimum the employer promises.
- Median, not mean: one inflated vacancy moves the mean but barely moves the median. Rates below a quarter or above four times the rank's median are treated as errors and excluded (58 of 15,494).
- The median is shown from 10 vacancies and 3 companies, the middle half from 30 vacancies and 5 companies, and the 80% band from 100 vacancies.
The report shows what employers promise in vacancies. Actual pay depends on the vessel, the company, experience and the contract.
6How to cite
Cite the edition: its figures never change, while the current page is updated monthly.
Rynda Crewing, “Seafarer salaries: November 2026”. Vacancies 1 Aug–31 Oct 2026: 15,436 vacancies from 252 companies. https://crewing.rynda.io/en/salaries/2026-11
According to Rynda Crewing, vacancies for the Master rank in August–October 2026 offered a median of $11,000 per month (1,200 vacancies).
Data may be used with attribution and a link to Rynda Crewing.
Edition data as CSV: download
Need a breakdown that is not on the page? Write to info@rynda.io.
7Questions and answers
Is this take-home pay?
It is the amount stated in the vacancy by the employer. The platform does not adjust for taxes or deductions: it is an employer's offer, not a payslip.
Why is my rank missing?
A rank enters the report once it has 30 vacancies from at least 5 companies over three months; otherwise a single company could move the figure. Vacancies for every rank are open in the Jobs section.
Where do the data come from?
From vacancies on the platform and on open job sites and crewing agency sites. Every vacancy in the calculation passed the platform's checks and was published on it.
Why did the figures change?
Since edition 10/2026, each vacancy counts once and the report covers vacancies paid in US dollars or euros on seagoing vessels. Previously, reposts of the same vacancy were counted separately, which pulled the median down.
How often is the report updated?
Monthly, on the 2nd, covering the last three full months. Past editions stay at their own addresses, and their figures never change.
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