Buying a used Catana: know which brand you're actually buying
Catana built two distinct catamaran identities under one roof, and the used market carries both. The core Catana range prioritizes daggerboard performance and weight-conscious carbon construction over interior volume. Bali, the sister brand Catana Group launched in 2014, is built around fixed keels rather than daggerboards and is oriented toward chartering ahead of private cruising. A used listing under the Catana name can point to either boat, so the first inspection question is a mission question: is this a passage-making performance cat, or a comfort-and-volume cruiser built to a charter brief?
Which era to target
Catana's own account of its history gives shoppers two useful cutoffs. 1997 to 2005 is the dividing line for construction: it's the window Catana points to for its shift onto the daggerboard, composite-hull platform the brand built its name on, so boats built before it predate that feature set entirely. 2020 is the other one — the Ocean Class generation that followed is the newest iteration of the range, while anything sold in between spans a long stretch of incremental refinement rather than a single defined jump worth shopping around.
What to inspect across the range
Two documented, cross-model patterns are worth a surveyor's particular attention. Catana reinforces its highest-load structural points with carbon fiber — chainplates on both the 47 and the 53, and the mast step as well on the 53 — according to Cruising World's and SAIL Magazine's model reviews, which makes those zones worth checking for cracking or delamination on any hull in the range. Electrical fit-out is the other recurring flag: Cruising World's Boat of the Year judges noted an exposed panel and other electrical issues on a Catana 47, and Spinsheet's used-boat review found early Catana 431s built to European electrical standards that don't always suit U.S. shore-power hookups. Both are worth a hands-on check rather than a glance at the panel door.
Navigating the lineup
The clearest first decision is Catana or Bali, not size or year. Buyers set on offshore performance should stay within the daggerboard Catana range and let era guide feature expectations; buyers prioritizing charter-style volume and easy living space are better served looking at Bali. From there, the full model directory on this page breaks down the specific hulls within each line.
Where they're listed
Catana listings appear across 32 countries. France has the most listings with 36 (17.6%), followed by United States and Spain.
Country view
205 listings · 32 countries| Country | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | $559,878 | 36 | 5 | 17.6% |
| United States | $682,197 | 35 | 23 | 17.1% |
| Spain | $578,926 | 20 | 4 | 9.8% |
| Martinique | $593,277 | 20 | 4 | 9.8% |
| Italy | $462,011 | 12 | 3 | 5.9% |
| Turkey | $600,282 | 11 | 0 | 5.4% |
| Grenada | $1,300,000 | 8 | 4 | 3.9% |
| Greece | $487,440 | 6 | 1 | 2.9% |
| Gibraltar | $1,217,879 | 5 | 0 | 2.4% |
| New Caledonia | $203,172 | 5 | 1 | 2.4% |
| New Zealand | $522,198 | 5 | 4 | 2.4% |
| United Kingdom | $350,000 | 4 | 0 | 2.0% |
| 20 other countries | — | 38 | 8 | 18.5% |
All Catana models
10 models grouped by length overall. Open any model to see recent asking prices and active listings.