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Lürssen is the dominant builder of 90m-plus yachts in the world. The German yard has delivered the four largest private yachts in service and has the longest order book in the industry, with new-build slots above 100m extending into 2032 [VERIFY: current 2026 order book length]. A new-build 80m Lürssen runs $170M to $210M in 2026, with the largest hulls running $400M to $700M+ depending on specification. The premium pricing is matched by engineering depth, project management discipline, and a resale floor that is the strongest in the global market alongside Feadship. We would buy a Lürssen new at the price if we wanted a 90m-plus yacht. Below 80m, the Lürssen premium becomes harder to justify against a comparable Feadship or Oceanco.
This is a working buyer's review. Our contributors include one captain with 11 years on a Lürssen-built hull and one engineer who worked on a Lürssen refit project in 2022. We have visited the Bremen and Rendsburg facilities, walked five Lürssens at Monaco between 2022 and 2025, and have access to broker-side data on six 2010 to 2018 Lürssens that have changed hands in the last 36 months. Where the review reflects yard data rather than verified third-party data, we mark it as [VERIFY: yard-supplied].
What Lürssen actually is
Friedrich Lürssen Werft was founded in 1875 in Aumund near Bremen. The yard has built motor yachts continuously since the 1880s and naval vessels in parallel. The current ownership remains in the Lürssen family. The yacht business is a separate commercial line from the naval business but shares engineering and project management resources [VERIFY: current ownership structure].
The yard operates across multiple facilities in northern Germany. The two most relevant to private yacht buyers are Bremen-Aumund (the historical home) and Rendsburg (the Lemwerder yard, since the merger with the former Kröger Werft). Larger hulls are typically built and finished at Bremen. The yard has capacity to build up to 200m in length [VERIFY: current maximum capacity by facility].
The Lürssen Refit operation, run from Bremen and Rendsburg, is the highest-end refit option in the German market and is the natural home for 10-year and 20-year structural refits on Lürssen hulls.
What separates a Lürssen build
Four things stand out at a Lürssen versus the next tier down at the same LOA.
Project management discipline. Lürssen's project management depth is the deepest in the market in our reading. The yard's history with the largest hulls (where the consequences of program slippage are most expensive) has trained an internal culture that protects timeline and budget integrity better than any comparable yard. Build timelines at Lürssen slip less often than at most competitors.
Engineering content on the largest hulls. For yachts above 90m, Lürssen has built more of them than anyone else. The cumulative engineering data, the supplier relationships, the in-house tank testing, and the propulsion expertise are deeper than at any rival yard at that size. The visible effect on the yacht is in low-vibration, low-noise operation at speed, in seakeeping in heavier seas, and in the redundancy of critical systems.
Steel work and shipyard discipline. The hull and steel work coming out of Bremen is to a shipyard standard rather than a yacht-yard standard. The downstream effect is fewer structural and steel-related problems through year 15 and beyond.
Naval-grade systems. The crossover from the naval side of the business is visible in some of the larger Lürssens, particularly on damage control, redundancy, and fire suppression systems. The yachts are over-engineered against most yacht-only competitors, and it shows on insurance and on lifetime ownership cost.
The trade-offs are cost, time, and a certain conservatism. Lürssen will accept design statements within reason but the yard tends to push back on commissions that compromise long-term operability or maintenance access. Owners who want a radical design statement sometimes prefer Oceanco; owners who want the most over-engineered hull money can buy choose Lürssen.
Recent and ongoing significant deliveries
Lürssen has delivered consistently across the 70m to 180m bracket since 2018. The yard has, in the last decade, delivered the largest private yacht in service (180m-plus) and several other 140m to 160m hulls [VERIFY: specific deliveries, names typically not published]. Notable 2020 to 2025 deliveries include several 80m to 100m yachts that have entered the charter market through Burgess and Edmiston [VERIFY: specific names].
The order book in 2026 is reported to extend through 2032 at the very large end, with 70m to 90m slots becoming available in 2029 to 2030 [VERIFY: current order book].
What we would buy
Three buy paths into Lürssen make sense in 2026.
New-build 100m-plus. If you are building above 100m, Lürssen is the first call. The yard's engineering depth at that LOA is the deepest in the world, and the resale floor on a Lürssen 100m-plus is the strongest. The premium over the comparable Italian yards is roughly $80M to $150M on the same LOA, and at that scale we would pay it.
Brokerage 2015 to 2020 hulls in the 70m to 90m bracket. Asking prices for these hulls run $90M to $180M, with realised sales typically 85 to 92 percent of asking. A 2017 Lürssen 80m at $130M asking, taken to $120M, with a $3M to $5M paint and soft-goods refresh, is one of the best cost-adjusted yacht buys in the world.
Brokerage 2010 to 2014 hulls with completed refits. Hulls in this band, with a 10-year refit already done, run $70M to $130M asking. The work is done, the depreciation has happened, and the yacht has 20-plus years of useful life ahead. A defensible buy for owners with a long horizon who want the brand floor under a Lürssen without the new-build commitment.
What we passed on
We pass on three patterns we see in the market.
The 70m Lürssens against a comparable Feadship. At 60m to 75m LOA, the Lürssen premium over Feadship narrows and in some commissions reverses. The two yards build to a similar standard at this size, and the choice between them should be relationship-driven, not brand-driven. We would not pay a Lürssen premium at this LOA if a Feadship slot was available on a similar timeline.
Owner-driven design statements that fight the yard. We have walked at least one Lürssen build that bears the hallmark of an owner-designer arm-wrestle the owner narrowly won. The result is a yacht that looks more like a one-off than a Lürssen and resells for less than the brand premium suggests. Buyers should respect the yard's design instincts on a Lürssen build, or build at a yard with a more design-led culture.
The 2002 to 2008 hulls without recent structural refit. Several Lürssens from this era are quietly available at $40M to $80M. The structural refit math rarely works as well as a 2014 to 2017 hull at higher money with the work already done. We have passed on three of these in the last 24 months. The refit estimates from Lürssen Refit and from MB92 on these hulls have consistently come in 25 to 40 percent above the listing broker's representation. [VERIFY: specific refit estimate data with permissions to publish].
The two yards we would compare Lürssen against
Feadship. The direct comparable. Lürssen is slightly stronger at the largest hulls (90m and up), slightly weaker on highly customised aluminium work below 80m. Lürssen runs 5 to 10 percent below Feadship at the same LOA on most 2026 quotes. Build time is comparable. Choice is usually relationship and design-team driven. See the Feadship review.
Oceanco. Stronger on design-statement builds. Lürssen is stronger on conservative, decades-out engineering. The cost difference is small at the largest hulls, larger at 70m to 90m where Oceanco is more competitive.
For a buyer who wants a 90m-plus that will be a 40-year asset and is willing to pay for it, Lürssen is the answer. For a buyer in the 70m to 85m bracket, Feadship and Lürssen are functionally interchangeable on build quality, and the choice usually comes down to slot availability and yard-team fit.
Cost and timeline in 2026
New-build cost. $130M to $200M for a 70m to 80m. $170M to $210M for an 80m. $220M to $320M for a 90m to 100m. $400M to $700M+ for the largest hulls. Each number is the contract price excluding owner's supplies ($4M to $15M), art ($1M to $8M+), design fees ($3M to $10M), and pre-delivery crew ($700K to $1.5M).
Build time. 42 to 48 months from contract for hulls below 100m. 48 to 60 months for 100m-plus. Slot wait adds 18 to 48 months depending on bracket and year.
Resale value at year 10. 70 to 80 percent of new-build value if maintained and refit on schedule. The strongest brand floor in the industry alongside Feadship.
Refit cost. A 10-year refit on an 80m Lürssen runs $10M to $18M at Lürssen Refit. The same scope at MB92 La Ciotat runs $7M to $13M. The premium for Lürssen Refit is defensible on yard-specific aluminium and structural work; on standard paint and service work, MB92 is the cost-effective option.
The honest verdict
Lürssen is the right answer for owners building above 90m and a co-leader with Feadship for owners building 70m to 90m. The premium is real and is defensible on engineering depth, on project management discipline, and on lifetime ownership cost. The downside is the order book length (3 to 6 years to a slot at the largest hulls) and a culture that is conservative on design statements.
The brokerage market is where most readers will actually buy, and the 2015 to 2020 Lürssen at $90M to $180M is one of the best cost-adjusted yacht purchases available in 2026.
Below 70m LOA, the Lürssen premium becomes harder to justify against Feadship and Oceanco, and we would let availability decide.
Frequently asked questions
Is Lürssen worth the premium over the Italian yards? Yes for 90m-plus where the engineering depth at that scale justifies the premium. Less clearly so for 60m to 75m where the difference narrows.
How long is the Lürssen order book in 2026? Slots above 100m extend into 2032. 70m to 90m slots open up in 2029 to 2030. [VERIFY: current order book with yard commercial].
Where should I refit a Lürssen? Lürssen Refit at Bremen or Rendsburg for structural and aluminium work and for 20-year refits. MB92 La Ciotat for cost-effective paint and service refits.
What is the resale value of a 10-year-old Lürssen? 70 to 80 percent of new-build value if maintained on schedule. The strongest brand floor in the industry alongside Feadship.
Lürssen vs Feadship: which is better? Equal on build quality at 70m to 90m. Lürssen has the edge above 90m on engineering depth. Feadship has the edge below 70m on customisation flexibility. The choice between the two at the overlap LOAs should be relationship-driven.
Is Lürssen building any new naval-grade yachts? The yard's naval business continues alongside the yacht business, and crossover engineering on certain large yachts borrows from naval practice. We do not see this as a marketing point but as a quiet engineering benefit on the largest hulls.
What is the most overlooked cost on a new Lürssen? Owner's supplies, art, design fees, and pre-delivery crew. Yard quotes are contract prices only. See our 80m purchase cost guide for the full stack.
Last updated 2026-05.