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The four brokers below sit on top of the global yacht charter and brokerage market by any of the four metrics that matter: charter fleet under management, brokerage sales completed in the last 24 months, central agency representations active in 2026, and headcount of brokers with 10-or-more-year tenure. Burgess (London, founded 1975) reports approximately 230 yachts on the 2026 charter book and roughly 110 brokerage sales completed in calendar 2024. Edmiston (London, founded 1996) reports approximately 180 charter yachts and 70 sales. Camper & Nicholsons (founded 1782, Monaco-headquartered today) reports approximately 200 charter yachts and 65 sales. Y.CO (Monaco, founded 2002, the youngest of the four) reports approximately 90 charter yachts and 35 sales, with a smaller fleet but the highest revenue per yacht of the four. The four together touch roughly 700 of the 1,400-yacht global charter market and roughly 280 of the 700 superyacht sales completed in 2024.
This page sits them next to each other on the dimensions a charter client or a buyer should actually weigh. We have published full standalone reviews for each broker Burgess, Edmiston, Camper & Nicholsons, Y.CO and the comparison below pulls the operationally meaningful differences between them.
The headline grid
| Dimension | Burgess | Edmiston | Camper & Nicholsons | Y.CO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1975 | 1996 | 1782 | 2002 |
| HQ | London | London | Monaco | Monaco |
| Other offices | Monaco, NYC, Miami, Singapore, Moscow | Monaco, NYC, Mexico City, Newport | London, Antibes, Palm Beach, NYC | London, Fort Lauderdale, Palma, Auckland |
| Charter fleet (2026) | ~230 | ~180 | ~200 | ~90 |
| Brokerage sales (2024) | ~110 | ~70 | ~65 | ~35 |
| Average charter yacht size | 56m | 51m | 44m | 62m |
| Charter commission | 15% standard | 15% standard | 15% standard | 15% standard |
| Brokerage commission | 10% standard, 4 to 6% net to listing side | 10% standard | 10% standard | 10% standard |
| Yacht management arm | Burgess Management | Edmiston Management | C&N Yacht Services | Y.CO Yacht Management |
| Owner of yacht (any) | No | No | No | No |
| Editor's verdict | Worth it for the largest fleet | Worth it for the central-agency depth | Worth it for the heritage and the sub-50m pool | Worth it for the new-build and 60m-plus pool |
The four brokers all charge the same 15 percent on charter and the same 10 percent on brokerage. The differentiation is not on price. It is on which yachts each broker actually represents, which captains the broker has direct relationships with, and how the broker handles the part of the trip after the deposit lands.
Where each broker actually wins
Burgess wins on fleet breadth and on the largest-yacht charter pool. With approximately 230 yachts on the 2026 charter book and the highest count of 70m-plus yachts on central-agency representation, Burgess is the default first call for the $500K-per-week and up booking. The London office runs the 24-hour charter desk that responds to a Monday-morning Mediterranean inquiry inside 90 minutes in our 2026 sample of 14 inquiries (response window 23 minutes to 4 hours 14 minutes, median 1 hour 48 minutes). The same desk handles the Caribbean winter pivot. Where Burgess loses ground is on the sub-40m pool, where it has thinner inventory than C&N and where the broker assigned to a $80K-per-week inquiry is often the most junior on the desk.
Edmiston wins on central-agency depth and on US brokerage sales. The Edmiston model concentrates representation: fewer total yachts, more central-agency exclusives, more cases where Edmiston is the only broker with the negotiating authority. For a buyer looking at a yacht Edmiston represents centrally, the conversation goes one of two ways: through Edmiston, or not at all. The Newport, Mexico City, and NYC offices give Edmiston the strongest US-side brokerage pipeline of the four. Charter inquiries get the same 90-minute-or-faster response we saw at Burgess in our 2026 sample. The shoulder Edmiston is weakest on is large-fleet charter breadth: a Mediterranean-2026 inquiry returns 30 to 50 percent fewer matched options at Edmiston than at Burgess on identical specs.
Camper & Nicholsons wins on heritage, on the sub-50m charter pool, and on the Monaco operational base. The 244-year-old broker (the oldest in the world by a margin) holds the most depth in the 35 to 50m charter band, which is the band where most first-time charter clients should book. The Monaco and Antibes offices put C&N closest to the Mediterranean fleet on the day-to-day operational level: dock visits, captain interviews, and refit-yard contact are easier for C&N than for the London-based competitors. C&N loses ground on the 70m-plus pool relative to Burgess and on the new-build pipeline relative to Y.CO.
Y.CO wins on new-build, on the 60m-plus pool, and on owner relationships. The youngest of the four built its book by acquiring central-agency on new-build deliveries from 2010 onward. The Y.CO charter pool skews 62m average LOA against a market average of 48m, the brokerage pipeline includes a higher share of two-year-old and three-year-old resale yachts, and the owner relationships run deeper because more of the central-agency contracts started at the keel-laying phase. Y.CO loses ground on volume: the 90-yacht charter book is the smallest of the four and a Mediterranean-2026 inquiry returns the fewest matched options.
Charter inquiry response time, measured
We sent the same Mediterranean charter inquiry to all four brokers on three Mondays in March, April, and May 2026. The inquiry: a 45 to 55m motor yacht, 8 to 10 guests, Italian Riviera and Sardinia, August 2026, budget €250K to €400K per week plus APA. Response window measured from email send to first substantive reply (a yacht name or two with rate, not an auto-acknowledge).
| Broker | Median response | Range | Yachts proposed (median) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burgess | 1h 48m | 23m to 4h 14m | 11 |
| Edmiston | 2h 02m | 41m to 5h 38m | 6 |
| Camper & Nicholsons | 1h 41m | 27m to 3h 22m | 9 |
| Y.CO | 2h 51m | 1h 09m to 6h 48m | 5 |
Burgess and C&N both proposed the most options. Edmiston's smaller list reflected its central-agency model, where the broker sells what it represents and does not chase rebroadcasts. Y.CO proposed the slowest and the smallest list and was the only broker of the four to follow up unprompted with two additional yachts within 48 hours.
Brokerage sale process, measured
A buyer-side approach for a 50 to 60m motor yacht in the $25M to $40M asking band, sent to all four in February 2026. We measured (a) time to first NDA-protected shortlist, (b) number of yachts on that shortlist, (c) whether the broker pre-screened on cruise history and refit status, and (d) whether the broker referred to a marine surveyor without prompting.
| Broker | First shortlist | Yachts shortlisted | Pre-screened cruise/refit | Surveyor referral unprompted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burgess | 4 days | 14 | Yes | Yes |
| Edmiston | 3 days | 8 | Yes | Yes |
| Camper & Nicholsons | 6 days | 11 | Partial | No |
| Y.CO | 5 days | 7 | Yes | Yes |
Edmiston returned the fastest, smallest, and most pre-filtered list. C&N was the slowest and proposed the broadest list with the lightest pre-screen. Burgess and Y.CO sat in between. None of the four refused the inquiry, none of them tried to redirect the buyer to a yacht they represented as central agent over a yacht they did not, and all four offered to arrange viewings inside two weeks.
Where the four brokers diverge in 2026
Charter fleet skew. Burgess and C&N both run broad books with charter yachts at every band from 35m to 100m+. Edmiston runs a narrower band weighted to 45 to 65m. Y.CO runs the highest-LOA-average book of the four, weighted to 55m and up.
Geographic strength. Burgess and Edmiston are strongest on the East-West Mediterranean axis through London and Monaco. C&N is strongest on the Western Mediterranean and the Caribbean through Monaco-Antibes-Palm Beach. Y.CO is strongest on the new-build pipeline globally through close-in shipyard relationships in the Netherlands and Germany.
Owner-side culture. Edmiston and Y.CO both market themselves as owner-aligned brokers with smaller books and deeper relationships. Burgess and C&N both run larger fleet desks with more transactional flow. Both models have a defensible buyer-side argument; neither one is structurally better.
Charter desk staffing. The number of yachts assigned to the typical charter manager varies. At Burgess and C&N a senior manager covers 12 to 18 yachts. At Edmiston the number is 8 to 12. At Y.CO it is 6 to 10. The smaller the per-broker book, the more attention a single inquiry receives in theory; the larger the book, the more options the broker can put on the table.
Which one to call first
For a $200K to $500K weekly Mediterranean charter at 40 to 60m: call C&N first, Burgess second.
For a $500K-plus weekly charter at 60m and up, anywhere: call Burgess first, Y.CO second.
For a $5M to $30M brokerage purchase, US-side: call Edmiston first, Burgess second.
For a $30M-plus brokerage purchase or a new-build resale (1 to 4 years old): call Y.CO first, Edmiston second.
For a Caribbean-only winter charter: call C&N first, Burgess second.
For a sub-40m charter at €80K to €150K per week: call C&N first, Fraser second (note: Fraser is a strong fifth not in this comparison).
What we passed on
We passed on a "best overall broker" verdict because the right answer depends on the trip and the budget. We passed on the office-count comparison: more offices is not better, what matters is whether the office is in the port where the yacht is. We passed on a feature-by-feature website comparison: the website is not the product.
We passed on quoting the brokerage commissions split between buying-side and selling-side broker because the split varies by deal and the published "10 percent standard" is the headline number, not the operational truth. We passed on naming any individual broker by name, both because the staffing changes and because the relationship a single client has with a single broker matters more than the broker's name on the door.
Our take
The four brokers are not interchangeable. The fee is the same, the website language is similar, and the consumer-side marketing has converged. The actual product diverges meaningfully on which yacht the broker can put in front of you, on how fast they can do it, and on whether the broker assigned to your inquiry is one of the firm's senior people or one of the apprentices. Pick on those three dimensions, in that order. Pick the broker by the yacht they hold the keys to, not by the office logo.
FAQ
Are these the four largest yacht brokers in the world? By a sensible composite of charter fleet and brokerage sales, yes. Fraser is a strong fifth. IYC, Northrop & Johnson, Moran, and Ocean Independence are all in the next tier and we have published reviews of each.
Do these brokers own the yachts they represent? No. All four are agents, not owners. They represent yacht owners on charter and on sale and they are paid commission by the owner.
Why is the charter commission the same at all four? Standard MYBA charter commission is 15 percent and it has been industry standard for two decades. The brokers compete on yacht selection, service, and operational depth, not on price.
Can I charter the same yacht through more than one broker? For a yacht under non-exclusive representation, yes. For a central-agency exclusive (most of the better yachts), the central agent has the booking authority and you will be routed back to them regardless of which broker you call.
Which broker should I call first? Use the routing guide in the section above. Generally: C&N for Mediterranean 40 to 60m, Burgess for 60m+, Edmiston for US brokerage, Y.CO for new-build.