Hull cleaning cost in San Francisco Bay Area: published rates

Published hull cleaning rates in San Francisco Bay Area

These are prices that businesses publish on their own websites and rate sheets. We read 3 pages from 3 Bay Area businesses. They are not DockDash prices, and your quote may differ.

Other regions: Southern California, or all of California.

How hull cleaning is priced

A diver cleans the underwater hull at your slip, usually on a monthly or every-few-weeks route. Most California hull cleaners publish a price per foot, and many add a minimum charge per visit.

Per foot of boat length per visit is the usual basis. Check whether the business measures length overall (LOA) or waterline, because LOA is longer and gives a higher bill for the same rate.

What drives the cost

• Boat length and how the business measures it (LOA or waterline).
• How fouled the hull is. A first cleaning or an overdue hull often costs more than a route visit.
• Hull shape and running gear: sailboat keels, twin engines, trim tabs and thrusters add time.
• Frequency: monthly route customers often get a lower rate than one-time cleanings.
• Paint type. Copper paint has cleaning limits (below); some divers charge differently for soft or ablative paint.
• Harbor permits, certification and insurance the business has to carry to work in that harbor.

Length overall vs waterline

Most per-foot prices are multiplied by the boat’s length overall (LOA): bow to stern, often including pulpits, swim platforms and davits. A few businesses use waterline length, which is shorter, so the same rate gives a smaller bill. Before comparing two quotes, ask each business which length it bills on and convert both to the same basis.

Many price lists also change the rate with size: a higher per-foot rate for bigger boats, or a flat minimum for small ones. Where a business published tiers, the tables below show each tier separately.

What’s usually included, and what’s extra

California rules that affect the price

• State guidance: don't clean copper-based bottom paint in the water for at least 90 days after it is applied, and after that only when needed and no more often than once every 30 days. Non-biocide coatings are cleaned more often, every 2 to 4 weeks. (Port of San Diego, LA County, DBW and California Coastal Commission, 2019)
• In San Diego Bay, every hull cleaning business needs a Port of San Diego permit (the permit fee is $250), and the Port's ordinance requires best management practices for in-water hull cleaning. The Port says it is reviewing its hull cleaning policies. (Port of San Diego)
• In Marina del Rey, everyone doing in-water hull cleaning needs BMP certification and a Commercial Services ID from the Harbor Master, and cleaning that leaves a visible paint plume is prohibited. LA County publishes the list of certified divers. (LA County Department of Beaches and Harbors)

Rules change. Check with the harbor or agency before relying on them.

How to read a quote

• Ask whether the rate is per foot of LOA or waterline, and what minimum applies.
• Ask whether zincs are included or billed per zinc plus parts.
• Ask whether the price changes for a first cleaning or a heavily fouled hull.
• In San Diego Bay or Marina del Rey, ask for the diver's permit or certification.
• Get the price in writing, with what is included, before work starts.

To check a price for your boat, try the service cost estimator; to line up two or three quotes on the same basis, use the quote comparison tool. What the job involves: Hull cleaning explained.

Every published price we found

• Bay City Dive SF Bay Area (site lists Benicia, Vallejo, Richmond, Oakland, Emeryville, Martinez) · San Francisco Bay

  • $4.75/ft — Monohulls (sail), 'starting at' Includes: Bootstripe to keel incl. rudder, props, shafts, trim tabs, thru-hulls, transducers; condition report.
  • $5.75/ft — Power boats, 'starting at'; outdrives $75 each extra Includes: Bootstripe to keel incl. rudder, props, shafts, trim tabs, thru-hulls, transducers; condition report.
  • $5.25–$5.50/ft — Multihulls, 'starting at': catamarans $5.25/ft, trimarans $5.50/ft Includes: Bootstripe to keel incl. rudder, props, shafts, trim tabs, thru-hulls, transducers; condition report.

  HULL CLEANING PRICING | Bay City Dive, © 2026 on the page (no other date), read 2026-11-11

• LH Marine (Lowell Harrison) SF Bay Area (all marinas) · San Francisco Bay

  • $4–$6.50/ft — Regularly scheduled sailboats by length: 31-35 ft $4.00, 36-42 $5.00, 43-54 $6.00, 55+ $6.50 Includes: Full cleaning and inspection. Page dated 2023; rates may have changed.
  • $130 flat price — Regularly scheduled sailboats up to 30 ft, 'starts at' Includes: Full cleaning and inspection. Page dated 2023; rates may have changed.
  • $6.50–$10/ft — Regularly scheduled power boats by length: 31-36 ft $6.50, 37-44 $8.50, 45+ $10.00 Page dated 2023; rates may have changed.
  • $140 flat price — Regularly scheduled power boats up to 30 ft, 'starts at' Page dated 2023; rates may have changed.

  Hull Cleaning | Hull Cleaning Dive Service | San Francisco Bay Area, © 2023 on the page (no other date), read 2026-11-11

• Poseidon Boat Services Alameda (service area) · San Francisco Bay

  • $4.50/ft — Sailboats, 'starts at', first-year paint on a 2–3 month schedule; severe fouling $7–12/ft Includes: Hull cleaning.
  • $5.50/ft — Motorboats, 'starts at', first-year paint on a 2–3 month schedule; severe fouling $7–20/ft; powerboats Includes: Hull cleaning.

  Pricing — Poseidon, © 2023-2026 on the page (no other date), read 2026-11-11

Methodology and limitations

• Sources: only the business’s own website or rate sheet. No reviews, directories, forums or quotes we requested. We did not contact any business.
• Sample: 9 published prices from 3 businesses on 3 pages. This is the set we could find, not a survey or a random sample, and many businesses don’t publish prices at all.
• Dates: we read every page on 2026-11-11. 0 of the pages carry a date or fiscal year, 3 show only a copyright year, and 0 have no date. Each price below shows what its page said.
• How we summarize: prices are grouped by unit (per foot, per hour, flat, per visit, per gallon) and by kind of job, and never mixed. The range runs from the lowest published price to the highest. The median gives each business one vote (the middle of its own range), so a yard with many size tiers doesn’t outweigh a diver with one price. Where a business wrote “starting at”, we used that figure, so real bills are often higher.
• Region pages exist only where at least 3 published prices from 2 or more businesses are available.
• Your quote may differ. Condition, access, season, and what’s included all change the price. Use these figures to ask better questions, not as a price promise.