In short, most Jon Boats are going to weigh between 400-500 pounds (180-225 kg) which includes both the aluminum hull as well as the engine. Some will weigh as little as 130 pounds (59kg) in total for the 10 foot lengths, while 20 foot boats will weigh upwards of 1,200 pounds (544kg) or more.
Weights by Boat Size
The weights are going to really vary by boat length, so here are averages by boat length that we compiled by analyzing over 30 boats and 25 appropriate engines for each size:
10 Foot: 130 pounds (59kg) + negligible fuel weight
12 Foot: 170 pounds 77kg) + negligible fuel weight
14 Foot: 275 pounds (125kg) + negligible fuel weight
16 Foot: 525 pounds (238kg) + 45 pounds (20kg) fuel weight for 3hrs
18 Foot: 880 pounds (440kg) + 75 pounds (34kg) fuel weight for 3hrs
20 Foot: 1,200 pounds (544kg) + 135 pounds (34kg) fuel weight for 3hrs
At the bottom of the post we share the 33 boats we sampled to determine these averages.
All in all, the majority of Jon Boats are going to weigh less than 1,200 pounds (544kg) between the hull, engine, and fuel. For their performance and utility, they are very lightweight.
Trailer Weight
We are putting an entire post together around trailers, but as a teaser, the smaller trailers fit for Jon Boats will weigh only around 200-300 pounds (91-136kg), while larger ones will be upwards of 600 pounds (272kg). Again, this is highly variable based on the size and carrying capacity (which doesn’t need to be much given the light weight of the average Jon), but it is a good starting point. More to come on our more detailed trailer guide.
Towing Capacity
If you crunch the numbers above, an average 14-16 foot Jon Boat including a trailer is still probably going to be less than 1,000 pounds (454kg) in total. This means just about any small or mid-sized SUV is going to be able to tow your average Jon Boat without any problem at all.
If you are doing the math on your specific car, be sure to include not only the total weight of the boat and trailer, but also any passengers and luggage/gear that you have in the car itself.
Can I tow with my car or sedan?
We’ll be honest here… while technically you could probably tow one of these with your car, we don’t recommend it as best practice. Generally when launching these boats into the water, it is most safe to have a vehicle with four wheel drive and decent ground clearance as you will likely be partially submerging the bottom of the car below the water line. If you’re in a Civic, you will be limited as to how far you can back the car up to launch the boat.
That being said, we put together a comprehensive post about towing your Jon Boat with a car. It’s doable in certain situations, but we cover the both the risks and also how to do it.
How much will the boat carry?
The carrying capacity of your Jon Boat is going to depend on the size of the boat. The bigger and longer it is, the more it will carry. We put together a post on this topic that looks at the same size groupings above. You can read more about carrying capacity here.
10 Foot Jon Boat Weight:
Average weight of 130 pounds (59kg) which is based on an average hull weight of 95 pounds (43kg) and average 3hp engine weight of 35 pounds (16kg).
Sample Size:
- Alumacraft 10 Foot Jon Boat: 95 pounds (43kg)
- Lowe L1032 Jon: 80 pounds (36kg)
- Waco Jon 1432 Series 10 Foot: 78 pounds (35kg)
- Tracker Topper 1036: 112 pounds (51kg)
- Smoker Craft 1032: 100 pounds (45kg)
- G3 Boats 1036: 100 pounds (45kg)
12 Foot Jon Boat Weight:
Average weight of 170 pounds (77kg) which is based on an average hull weight of 110 pounds (50kg) and average 6hp engine weight of 60 pounds (27kg).
Sample Size:
- Alumacraft 12 Foot Jon Boat: 105 pounds (48kg)
- Lowe L1232: 90 pounds (41kg)
- Waco Jon 1432 Series 12 Foot: 88 pounds (40kg)
- Tracker Topper 1236: 126 pounds (57kg)
- Smoker Craft 1232: 120 pounds (54kg)
- G3 Boats 1236: 144 pounds (65kg)
- Pelican Intruder 12: 127 pounds (58kg)
- Lost Creek 12 Foot: 90 pounds (41kg)
14 Foot Jon Boat Weight:
Average weight of 275 pounds (125kg) which is based on an average hull weight of 160 pounds (73kg) and average 15hp engine weight of 115 pounds (52kg).
Sample Size:
- Waco Jon 1432 Series 14 Foot: 104 pounds (47kg)
- Lowe L1436: 185 pounds (84kg)
- Tracker Topper 1436: 162 pounds (73kg)
- Smoker Craft 1436: 185 pounds (84kg)
- G3 Boats 14 Foot (average of 14 foot models): 190 pounds (86kg)
- Lost Creek 14 Foot: 145 pounds (66kg)
16 Foot Jon Boat Weight:
Average weight of 525 pounds (238kg) which is based on an average hull weight of 360 pounds (163kg) and average 30hp engine weight of 165 pounds (75kg). At this engine size you can also start adding around 0.5 pounds of fuel per horsepower per hour of engine operation. For example, a 30hp engine ran for 3 hours would consume around 45 pounds of fuel (30hp * .5 pounds per hour * 3 hours).
Sample Size:
- Alumacraft 16 Foot Jon Boat: 320 pounds (145kg)
- Lowe L1648: 275 pounds (125kg)
- Tracker Grizzly 1648 Jon: 638 pounds (289kg)
- Smoker Craft 1648: 295 pounds (134kg)
- G3 Boats 16 Foot (average of 16 foot models): 375 pounds (170kg)
- Crestliner 1600: 275 pounds (125kg)
- XPress Boats 1650 VJ: 341 pounds (155kg)
18 Foot Jon Boat Weight:
Average weight of 880 pounds (400kg) which is based on an average hull weight of 590 pounds (268kg) and average 50hp engine weight of 290 pounds (132kg). 3 hours of fuel consumption using the formula above (.5 pounds per horsepower per hour) will burn around 75 pounds of fuel.
Sample Size:
- Tracker Grizzly 1860 Jon: 794 pounds (360kg)
- Crestliner 1800: 475 pounds (215kg)
- G3 Boats 16 Foot (average of 18 foot models): 500 pounds (227kg)
Note: For the 18 and 20 foot boat lengths, we intentionally kept this sample size on the smaller end. This is because boats of this size start to come more feature-packed and pre-configured, versus just being able to buy a hull and an engine separately. There are tons of boats out there for averages, but we wanted to keep the methodology consistent with the smaller boats.
20 Foot Jon Boat Weight:
Average weight of 1,200 pounds (544kg) which is based on an average hull weight of 830 pounds (376kg) and average 90hp engine weight of 370 pounds (168kg). 3 hours of fuel consumption will burn around 135 pounds of fuel.
Sample Size:
- Lowe Roughneck 2070: 710 pounds (322kg)
- Crestliner 2070 Retriever: 710 pounds (322kg)
- G3 Boats Gator Tough (average of 20 foot models): 1,065 pounds (483kg)
Note: Same commentary as 18 foot boats in regards to keeping the sample size intentionally small.
