Buying an aluminum fishing boat will lead to awesome family adventures, easy maintenance and operation, and hassle-free fun—and if you get one of these 15 most affordable aluminum fishing boats, you’ll discover that it’s also a surprisingly inexpensive purchase.
Just how affordable are these boats? All 15 we’re about to check out can be purchased with monthly payments of under or about $200 (assuming a $20,000 loan at five percent with a 10-year term), which is around the average cell phone bill for a family of four with an unlimited data plan. We know you anglers can already afford to talk the talk, so now that you know you can affordably walk the walk it’s time to consider these 15 most affordable aluminum fishing boats.
Explore All Aluminum Fishing Boat Brands & Models
1. Alumacraft 175 Prowler
The Alumacraft 175 Prowler posts a base NAP price starting at $15,799 with a 50 HP Mercury FourStroke outboard and a trailer with LED lights and chrome wheels. The boat has a modified-V hull, is equipped with a 20-gallon livewell, four seats, a fiberglass console, and No Feedback steering.
Its construction sets this model apart from the crowd, starting by utilizing .102” thick aluminum for both the hull bottom and the sides. Many competing boats use thinner aluminum in the hull sides. It also features a one-piece keel, stainless-steel eyes at the bow and stern, and a single-stage metallic paint finish.
Visit Alumacraft to learn more.
2. Crestliner 1860 Retriever
You want an aluminum fishing boat that can do double-duty as a hunting boat? Crestliner’s 1860 Retriever fits the bill. This 18’ long 7’1” wide boat is available in both center console and side console versions and can be finished off in a Mossy Oak or Shadowgrass camo finish.
The all-welded 1860 Retriever also has a 16-gallon livewell, rod/gun boxes, and a raised bowdeck with stowage compartments built in. Plus it has Crestliner’s Suremount gunwale track system, which allows you to mount accessories like fishing rod holders, shell holders, or cup holders wherever you’d like. So, what’s list cost for this multisport platform? A mere $17,945.
Visit Crestliner to learn more.
3. G3 Outfitter V167 T
Coming in at a hair under $18,000 (with a 50 HP Yamaha F50 outboard and a Trail Guard trailer), the G3 Outfitter V16 T delivers the ride of a deep-V hull plus the secure feeling of having tall sides around a deep cockpit. Stock features include a livewell, locking rodboxes, two fishing chairs, and huge stowage compartments built into the foredeck. One of the more unusual features, however, is the ability to choose between console and tiller controls.
The standard boat comes with a tiller-steer outboard, which many anglers who favor slow-trolling prefer for the incredible control. If you prefer forward controls and a steering wheel, however, vacuum-formed and aluminum console options with controls and a windshield are available without coming close to pushing cost beyond the $20,000 mark.
Visit G3 Boats to learn more.
4. Koffler 17 High Side Drift Boat
If you want to fish in the rapids, navigate through canyons, and cast a fly into pools beyond the whitewater, you need a special craft made for just the journey—and a Koffler 17 High Side Drift Boat fits the bill. Starting at around $13,000 with a trailer and no motor (though you could easily add one without breaking the budget), this boat will have you enjoying the adrenaline rush of running the river in no time.
Standard features include multiple oarsman seat configurations, multi-position oarlock blocks, a foot brace, and diamond-plate decking. Koffler builds customizable boats with plenty of available options, but whatever you might want in a boat of this nature one thing is for sure: if you want to fish in those rivers and rapids, nothing can match a drift boat.
Visit Koffler Boats to learn more.
5. Legend 15 AllSport
With a list price right around the $20K mark (since the Legend is built in Canada exact numbers will vary with the exchange rate), the Legend 15 AllSport is one of the most affordable boat-motor-trailer packages around that delivers a ducal console design with a full windshield. It also comes with a tall “Stand Up All-Weather” canvass Bimini and curtain enclosure that protects the helm and cockpit, making this a fishing machine that can hit the water even when it’s raining or snowing.
The standard powerplant is a Mercury 40 ELPT FourStroke, and other standard items include a Humminbird PiranhaMAX fishfinder, a pair of adjustable rodholders, raised fore and aft casting decks with fishing seat pedestal mounts, and a livewell. If you want an aluminum fishing boat that provides maximum protection in the cold and rain, this boat will be of interest.
Visit Legend to learn more.
6. Lowe Stinger 175C
If you want an aluminum fishing boat designed just like the bass boats the pros use, the Lowe Stinger 175C should be on your short list. It’s uber-affordable starting at $16,495 with the base 25 HP outboard, or can be powered up to 75 horses and still comes in just under our pricing bar.
Like most serious bass boats it’s decked fore and aft with a center cockpit that seats three, and has raised fore and aft pedestal fishing seats, integrated tackle stowage in the aft deck, and a 23-gallon livewell (with a lift-out minnow bucket). Plus, unlike most relatively low-cost aluminum fishing boats this one comes with a bow-mount electric trolling motor already installed, a MotorGuide X3 12-volt 45-pound thrust model.
Visit Lowe Boats to learn more.
7. Lund 1675 Adventure
If you want a fishing boat that also serves as a great platform for family fun, it’s time to take a look at the Lund 1675 Adventure. This model comes in right around our price cap with a 60 HP Mercury FourStroke on the transom and a trailer with a swing-away tongue under the hull, and it has features that will keep everyone in the clan happy: a four-step boarding ladder, a 12-V power port plus cell phone/MP3 player holder, drink holders, a flip-open center windshield, and twin flip-up aft jump seats.
Fishing still takes center stage, however, and the boat also has a 23-gallon rear livewell, a raised bow casting platform, and a 10’ long locking rodbox for up to 10 rigs.
Visit Lund Boats to learn more.
8. Princecraft Resorter 160 BT
If you want a simple, no-nonsense fishing boat that costs even less than your monthly electric bill much less your family’s cell plan, check out the Princecraft Resorter 160 BT. This rig is wide-open with two pedestal fishing seats, and an elevated bow casting deck that houses a 16-gallon livewell.
The stock tiller-steer outboard is a Mercury 20 HP FourStroke and the trailer is a single-axel galvanized model with LED lights and a swing-away tongue. Princecraft also mounts a lighted switch panel aft near the captain’s seat, with a bump-out mounting surface for your fishfinder.
Visit Princecraft to learn more.
9. Ranger VS1660T
The Ranger VS1660T is another tiller-steer model, but it’s just as jazzed up as most boats with forward helm stations. Along with the stock 40-horse outboard and Ranger Trail trailer, the $17,995 list price also gets you some high-end features like power trim and tilt, a 55-pound thrust bow-mounted Minn Kota trolling motor, high-gloss paint (your choice of colors) with chrome Ranger accents, a livewell in the bow, a side console with switches and electronics mounting, bow trim and navigation switches, and locking rod stowage boxes.
If you like tiller-steered arrangements but you also want Cadillac-level style, this is your boat.
Visit Ranger to learn more.
10. Smoker Craft Excursion 166 SC Pro
Posting a base cost of $14,408, the Smoker Craft Excursion 166 SC Pro is a side-console model with an unusual layout: the elevated foredeck extends aft next to the console, adding stowage space and raised casting area. On most boats, the same spot would serve merely as a walk-through area. This boat also has a beefier feel than most 16-footers, with 12-degrees of deadrise in the transom that translates into a smoother ride.
Extra bonus: the Excursion Pro 166 SC can rival any fiberglass boat on the market when it comes to looks, thanks to a coat of twice-baked urethane paint.
Visit Smoker Craft to learn more.
11. Starcraft Freedom 160 SC/TL and 180 SC/TL
The StarCraft Freedom line is going to be of interest to anglers with kids, because of the low open deck with little elevated surface. Many aluminum fishing boats have raised casting decks and while those can be quite advantageous for fishing, if you have young children aboard you’d probably be wishing for tall hullsides that keep them contained from bow to stern—and with these models that’s exactly what you’ll get.
Pricing for the TL (tiller-steer) is under the SC (side console) and 16-foot models can be several thousand dollars under our $20K budget with a 40 HP outboard, or slightly over for the 18-foot version with a larger 60- or 70-HP powerplant. Either way the boat comes with a livewell, two fishing seats, and those tall kid-containing hullsides.
Visit Starcraft Marine to learn more.
12. StealthCraft Superfly
If you’re in the market for a drift boat and you want one large enough to take several friends on fly fishing adventures afloat, check out the $9,995 StealthCraft Superfly. This 16’ long package (including the boat with seating and oars) is available with multiple seating arrangements, includes a removable casting brace and a bow keel guard, and has seven oar lock positions.
Constructed with Kevlar and honeycomb core, the Superfly is whitewater-capable and ready to fish.
Visit StealthCraft Boats to learn more.
13. Tracker Pro 170
Another contender among the bass boat crowd is the Tracker Pro 170, which carries a “no haggle no hassle” price tag of $14,995 packaged with a 40-horsepower Mercury outboard and a single axel trailer. That gives it more speed than many affordable fishing boats, with a top-end over 30 MPH, and upgrading to a 50 HP powerplant (just an additional $700) gets you speeds in the mid-30s.
The bow and stern are fully decked out for bass fishing, and all the critical angling components are included at list price: a Lowrance Hook2 4x fishfinder, a Minn Kota Edge 45-pound thrust electric trolling motor with foot controls, a 15-gallon livewell, two fishing seats, and a locking rodbox round out the features list.
Visit Tracker Boats to learn more.
14. Triton 1862 CC
Anglers who want a center console fishing machine that can handle marine use will be interested in the Triton 1862 CC. This straightforward fishing boat is ready for either freshwater or saltwater, and with 18’4” of length and a 7’6” beam, also has more room than most of the boats in this roundup.
Available with a 60 HP Mercury outboard for just under $20,000, it also comes with a custom-built trailer with a swing-away tongue and aluminum wheels. Also take note of the Rawhide interior coating, the three vertical rodholders on either side of the console, and the leaning post-style helm seating.
Visit Triton Boats to learn more.
15. Xpress Xplorer XP170
You say you enjoy both bass fishing and bird hunting? Not a problem, if you have an Xpress Xplorer XP170. Packaged with a Yamaha F50 and a trailer the fully camouflaged XP170 goes for $19,995.
In a nod to having more cockpit space available for decoys and gear less of the boat is decked as compared to a dedicated bass boat, but it still has large aft and forward casting platforms with pedestal seat bases, a Minn Kota Edge 45-pound thrust electric trolling motor on the bow, an aerated livewell in the aft deck, and a Humminbird PiranhaMAX 4 fishfinder at the helm. Plus, the Xpress features all-welded construction with foam injection.
Visit Xpress Boats to learn more.
Bonus Boat: Alweld 1860 Bowfish
Bowfishing takes a very specific type of aluminum fishing boat, and although the Alweld 1860 Bowfish does go above our price ceiling, we wanted to make sure the arrow-slinging anglers among us knew it was out there. It features huge rectangular bow and aft decks plus gunwales wide enough to transit, so you can move 360-degrees around the boat while elevated to get the perfect shot.
The 1860 Bowfish also features a center console, a draining cockpit, rigging trays, and oodles of stowage in the decks.
Visit Alweld Boats to learn more.
You say that even at these prices you can’t afford a new aluminum fishing boat? Then we have one simple bit of advice: throw that cell phone overboard and cancel your plan. With all that budget you just freed up, it should now be a piece of cake paying for one of these affordable aluminum fishing boats.
Read Next: 10 Most Affordable Fishing Boats
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