You can access our copy of the United States Coast Guard's (USCG) vessel data base and extract vessel characteristic, documentation, and ownership data (please read our data caveats page). This data base is updated on a monthly basis. Our query program only retrieves data about vessels which are craft that are 5 net tons or larger and are documented by the USCG. Craft less than 5 net tons ("boats") are numbered by individual states. Refer to our data caveats page for information about who collects vessel documentation data, the type of data collected and for the authorization and rationale for publishing these data.

The “Search By Name” vessel documentation query will only retrieve data for vessels which are currently documented or which have not exceeded their certificate’s expiration date by more than 180 days. The “Search By USCG Official Number” query will retrieve documentation data (exclusive of ownership) for craft that have exceeded the expiration date by more than 180 days.

Contact the USCG Vessel Documentation Center for vessel title and lien information. If you would like to obtain a copy of the USCG's list of documented vessels, "Merchant Vessels of the United States," purchase information is listed in the "Frequently Asked Questions " at the documentation center's web site.