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There is no single best bowrider, only the best bowrider for how you will actually use it. These are our category picks, based on ride quality, layout intelligence, build integrity and how the boats hold value.
Our picks for the best bowrider boats by budget, use and build material, judged on ride, layout, reliability and resale value.
The bowriders that come up most often when readers ask us where to start.
The world's best-selling bowrider size, in its most accessible form: light, simple and easy to tow.
US$38,000 - US$52,000 new
The refined mainstream benchmark: quiet, dry, and beautifully finished for the money.
US$72,000 - US$95,000 new
The previous-generation classic. Millions of families learned to boat in one of these.
US$8,000 - US$22,000 used
Cobalt takes this comfortably. The R6 is the boat every other builder benchmarks against for hardware quality, ride softness and long-term tightness. Chaparral and Sea Ray run close behind at a lower price.
The Bayliner VR5 with outboard power. It is the cheapest realistic route into a modern, well-supported bowrider, and the outboard removes most of the maintenance risk that makes cheap older boats expensive.
For serious skiing, the Malibu Response TXi with its direct-drive inboard. For a family boat that still tows well, a Chaparral 21 SSi or a Four Winns H2 with a tow tower and ballast.
The Quintrex 540 Cruiseabout. Light enough to tow behind almost anything, tough enough for hard ramps, and genuinely convertible between family cruising and fishing.
The Yamaha SX210. No propeller, a flat unobstructed swim platform and shallow draft make it the boat parents relax on.
