Tofinou 9.7 Buyer's Guide
The Tofinou 9.7 is a French dayboat unveiled in 2019 as the seventh addition to the Tofinou family, built for harbour cruising and short-handed club racing alike. On the brokerage market it presents as a modern, lightweight coastal vessel with distinctive vermilion hull and teak decks, and buyers should weigh its minimalist below-decks accommodation against its sailing agility.
Layouts on the Used Market
The standard cabin layout carries four berths including the saloon seats, with a pair of bunks or sail lockers under the cockpit floor, a pair of lounges, a split galley, a forward vee berth, and a chemical toilet as standard. A comfort pack option adds a sink and hob. Headroom below is 1.34m and there are no hull windows, so light enters via the forward hatch and large companionway. The cockpit is split into a comfort area forward and technical sailing elements aft, with wide benches and a reversible central footrest. Buyers will commonly find the teak decks and sugar-scoop transom with lazarette; the vertically lifting keel version has a keel well that significantly impacts accommodation, so most used boats favour the fixed, swing, or retractable keel arrangements.
Equipment and Common Upgrades
Commonly fitted equipment on the used market includes a self tacking jib, teak decks, spinnaker, swim platform, cockpit shower, and chartplotter. A code zero, asymmetric spinnaker, electric winches, autopilot, and short handed setup appear as sometimes-or-owner upgrades. The base boat comes with quality stainless steel drop-down cleats and the 15hp diesel saildrive, with an optional electric saildrive for those who don't motor far. The fractional rig with Axxon carbon mast and hidden line channels is standard, and an optional pair of coachroof winches for halyards may be present as an owner addition.
What to Inspect
The below-decks headroom is limited at 1.34m and the vertically lifting keel well significantly impacts accommodation, so confirm which keel version is fitted and how it affects the berths. The boat has noticeably low freeboard and lacks guardwires, and with keel raised the draught is 1.22m but taking the ground requires legs — a delicate exercise. There is no bow roller, making the boat suited to a light anchor with rope rode rather than heavier tackle, so inspect the bow area for makeshift solutions. The companionway hatch lifts in two gas-strut sections and the mahogany coamings are removable; check varnish and veneer-covered composite condition given the teak and mahogany detailing.
Availability and Buyer's Takeaway
The Tofinou 9.7 typically appears on the used market in France, the United States, and Australia. For a buyer, the short checklist is: confirm keel type and its accommodation impact, verify low-freeboard grounding legs are intact, check for absent bow roller and appropriate light anchor, and assess teak deck and mahogany coaming wear. This is a dayboat first — elegant, fast, and easy short-handed, but limited for extended cruising.
Price & volume trends
Monthly asking-price and listing-volume trends for the Tofinou 9.7. The line shows the median ask each month; the bars show how many listings appeared.
Monthly breakdown · 4 rows
| Month | Listings | Median ask | Δ vs. last mo. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26 | 1 | $ 176,360 | — |
| Apr 26 | 1 | $ 252,876 | +43.4% |
| May 26 | 1 | $ 254,445 | +0.6% |
| Jun 26 | 1 | $ 252,876 | -0.6% |
Where they're listed
Tofinou 9.7 listings appear across 2 countries. France has the most listings with 3 (75.0%), followed by Australia.
Comparable models
Similar length, displacement, and era. Open a row to compare that model's market page.
Similar boats to compare
4 similar designs| Model | LOA | Median ask | Listings · 12 mo | Active · 90 d |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| J-Boats J/97 | 31.53' | $ 137,927 | 12 | 8 |
| Tofinou 9.5 | 31.17' | $ 122,127 | 10 | 0 |
| Sparkman & Stephens 30 | 30.5' | $ 35,000 | 9 | 1 |
| Tofinou 9.7You are here | — | $ 252,876 | 4 | 3 |