Course type
A USCG captain's license lets you carry paying passengers. The OUPV (“Six-Pack”) covers up to six passengers, while a Master license scales to larger vessels and crews. These are the highest-value…
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A USCG captain's license lets you carry paying passengers. The OUPV (“Six-Pack”) covers up to six passengers, while a Master license scales to larger vessels and crews.
These are the highest-value courses on the site: they take real study time, cost more, and lead to paid work, so choosing an accredited, well-reviewed provider matters.
Two paths — OUPV and Master — converge on the same six steps. It starts with an approved course and exam.
Both are U.S. Coast Guard credentials that let you get paid to operate a boat — the difference is scale. An OUPV (“Six-Pack”) lets you carry up to six paying passengers on uninspected vessels, and it's the entry point for most charter fishing, dive, and tour captains. A Masterlicense lets you operate Coast Guard–inspected vessels and carry more than six passengers, up to the limit on that vessel's Certificate of Inspection. Most people start with the OUPV and upgrade to a Master later as they log more sea time.
| OUPV (“Six-Pack”) | Master (up to 100 GT) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it lets you do | Carry up to 6 paying passengers for hire on uninspected vessels | Operate Coast Guard–inspected vessels and carry more than 6 passengers |
| Vessel type | Uninspected, under 100 GRT | Inspected and uninspected, up to the license tonnage |
| Passenger limit | 6 | More than 6 — set by the vessel’s Certificate of Inspection, not the license |
| Sea-time required | 12 months of vessel-operation experience (~360 days) | 2 years total service (~720 days); at least 1 year on ocean/near-coastal waters |
| Recency | At least 3 months of qualifying service within the prior 3 years | Same — at least 3 months within the prior 3 years |
| Minimum age | 18 | 19 (Master of 25–200 GRT) |
| Tonnage | n/a (under 100 GRT) | Issued at 25 / 50 / 100 GT based on the vessels your experience was earned on |
| Typical use | Charter fishing, dive, eco-tour, and delivery captains starting out | Larger charters, tour boats, water taxis, dinner cruises; captains scaling up |
| Course cost (rough) | ~$600–$700 online; ~$850–$1,050 in person | Higher than OUPV; often sold as an upgrade |
Both licenses are issued for Inland, Great Lakes, or Near Coastal waters (Near Coastal = within 100 nautical miles offshore), depending on where your sea time was logged.
Plan on the course plus $269 in federal fees for an OUPV — not just the course price you see advertised — with a clinic-priced medical exam and drug test on top. Our captain's license cost breakdown itemizes every fee with its source. The course itself varies most: fully online courses run about $600–$700, while in-person classroom courses run about $850–$1,050 (plus the Coast Guard’s $95 examination fee if you sit its exam rather than an approved course’s). A Master license costs more, since it requires a longer course.
Mariners Learning Systemoffers fully online, self-paced OUPV and Master captain's license courses, including an at-home proctored exam — so you can study on your own schedule.
10% off at Mariners with code
About $70 off the $695 OUPV course
BOATINGCLASSESEnter it at Mariners Learning System's checkout. We earn a commission when this code is used, at no extra cost to you — it never changes how we rank or review courses.
Take our free readiness check — real NASBLA/USCG questions on navigation rules, lights, and distress signals — and see exactly what you don't know before you enroll.
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Online captain’s license school, founded in 2002: the OUPV course is $695 and the 100-Ton Master $895, with the proctored final exam taken online.
10% off at Mariners with code
About $70 off the $695 OUPV course
BOATINGCLASSESEnter it at Mariners Learning System's checkout. We earn a commission when this code is used, at no extra cost to you — it never changes how we rank or review courses.
Online USCG captain's license courses (OUPV through Master/Mate 200 Ton) with self-paced study and a proctored online exam.
A long-running maritime school offering USCG captain's license and professional courses online and at Southeast US campuses.
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