One craft, your numbers
Jet car rental business calculator.
Choose a market, then move three sliders: the price you really collect per booked hour, the hours you sell per operating day and the days you work per year. The calculator applies realistic cost lines and shows the operating result and the payback. The defaults are our base case, not a promise.
Defaults are our base-case assumptions built from rental prices listed publicly in November 2026. Move the sliders to your own numbers. Results are illustrative, before depreciation and tax, and are not a forecast or a promise of income.
Why the price list is not the income.
Operators in Dubai list a jet car ride at AED 750–1,200 (about USD 204–327) for 30 minutes and a full hour at AED 1,000–1,800 (about USD 272–490) per hour. The short slot is priced at a premium; few guests buy a whole hour. What reaches the bank is the realised price per booked hour, which in our reading of public price lists sits at USD 270–500 per booked hour in Dubai, USD 300–520 per booked hour in Jeddah, USD 175–350 per booked hour in Miami, USD 450–560 per booked hour at Maldives resorts and USD 110–190 per booked hour in South-East Asia.
The second variable is sold hours. A craft that sells one hour a day in the Gulf roughly covers its costs. At one and three-quarter hours it pays back in about a year in our Dubai base case. At three hours a day, which only the best berths reach, it pays back in a few months. Below one hour it loses money.
That is the honest version of the brochure line about fast payback. The rental business page explains each cost line.
Base-case defaults used by the calculator.
| Market | Price per booked hour | Sold hours per day | Operating days | Payback, stand-alone |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dubai | USD 380 | 1.75 | 280 | about 11 months |
| Jeddah | USD 420 | 1.25 | 260 | about 20 months |
| Maldives resort | USD 520 | 1.0 | 320 | 7–8 months |
| Miami | USD 275 | 2.0 | 300 | none at these inputs |
| South-East Asia | USD 140 | 2.0 | 280 | more than five years |
Our own illustrative scenarios, built from rental prices listed publicly in November 2026 and our cost assumptions (fuel, escort jet ski and guide, maintenance, crew, berth, insurance, licence, booking commissions, marketing, card fees). Before depreciation and tax. Not a forecast.
Costs the calculator includes.
- Fuel for the jet car and for the escort jet ski that guides most rentals.
- A maintenance reserve per engine-hour plus a fixed yearly service.
- Crew: a guide and part of a booking person. Shared when the craft joins an existing fleet.
- Berth or beach concession, insurance, and the yearly licence or permit.
- Booking-platform and hotel-desk commissions of about 25% on the share of sales that comes through them.
- Marketing and card fees as a percentage of revenue.
Questions buyers ask on WhatsApp
How much can a jet car rental make per year?
In a typical Gulf year our scenarios give a gross of USD 65,000–190,000 a year for one stand-alone craft and operating costs of USD 75,000–180,000 a year. The result depends almost entirely on sold hours. Read how to start a jet car rental business.
Is a jet car more profitable than a jet ski?
Per craft and per berth, yes: the ride sells for roughly two to three times a jet ski ticket in the same harbour. Per dollar invested it is about equal, because the craft costs three to four times as much. See jet ski or jet car.
What is the payback if I add one to my existing fleet?
Crew, berth and permit are already paid, so the same sales leave more. In our Dubai base case the payback falls to about 6 months. Choose 'Added to an existing fleet' in the calculator. More on the operators page.
Why does Miami show no payback?
Miami list prices are USD 175–350 per hour, crew and insurance cost more than anywhere else in our model, and several operators compete. A stand-alone craft needs well over two sold hours a day there. See the Florida page.
Read next
Rental business
Jet car rental business in numbers: ride prices in 5 destinations, cost lines for one craft, payback of 11–20 months in base cases. Ask on WhatsApp.
Price
Jet car price list: USD 24,490–28,990 for the craft without engine, about USD 50,000 complete. What freight, duty and VAT add. Written quote on WhatsApp.
Start a jet car rental
How to start a jet car rental business in 8 steps: location, berth and permit, landed cost, slots, channels and three illustrative scenarios. WhatsApp us.