Nautitech 44 vs Outremer 45: Which One Actually Fits You

The short answer

If you want more interior volume, bigger fuel and water tanks, a merged cockpit-saloon layout you can single-hand comfortably, and a lower entry price, buy the Nautitech 44 Open. If you want a lighter, faster catamaran with daggerboards that can target 80–90% of true wind speed and you're willing to accept less tankage, tighter interiors, and more complex line management, buy the Outremer 45.

They are not competitors in the way most comparison articles imply. They share a length bracket and a country of origin. That's roughly where the overlap ends.

The Nautitech 44 Open is designed by Marc Lombard, built in Rochefort by Bavaria's catamaran division, and aimed at roughly 90% private owners: couples and families who want a comfortable, manageable bluewater cruiser. The Outremer 45 is drawn by Christophe Barreau and Frédéric Neuman, built in La Grande Motte (now Lorient) by Outremer Yachting, and aimed at sailors who treat passage speed as a safety feature. Both are CE Category A ocean boats. Both are French-built. Both offer self-tacking jibs. But the design DNA is different enough that you will know within five minutes aboard which one belongs on your shortlist.

Side-by-side numbers

Spec	Nautitech 44 Open	Outremer 45 (2016+)
LOA	13.30 m / 43 ft 8 in	14.6 m / 48 ft
LWL	13.0 m	14.6 m
Beam	7.36 m / 24 ft 2 in	7.1 m / 23 ft 4 in
Draft	1.45 m (fixed keel)	~0.9–1.25 m boards up / 2.01–2.15 m boards down
Displacement (lightship)	~10,700 kg (sources vary 10,300–10,900 kg)	8,700 kg
D/L Ratio	121 (light displacement)	70 (ultralight)
SA/D Ratio	22.8	27
Sail area (main + jib)	106 m² (main 75 m² + jib 30 m²)	106 m² (main 67 m² + jib 39 m²)
Engines	2×30 hp std (most delivered with 2×50 hp)	2×30 hp Volvo D1-30
Fuel capacity	500 L (2×250 L)	300–336 L
Water capacity	600 L (2×300 L)	~407 L
Cabins / heads	3 or 4 / 2	3 or 4 / 2
Air draft	~21.4 m	20.0–20.4 m
Hull construction	Vacuum-infused FRP, Divinycell core	Vinylester/Divinycell, solid glass below WL, carbon in high-load areas
Designers	Marc Lombard (NA)	Barreau & Neuman (NA)
Builder	Nautitech (Bavaria Group), Rochefort	Outremer Yachting, La Grande Motte / Lorient
CE Category	A — Ocean	A — Ocean
In production	2022–present	2016+–present

The numbers that matter most here are displacement and D/L ratio. D/L, or displacement-to-length, measures how heavy a hull is relative to its waterline. The Nautitech sits at 121, solidly in the light-displacement category. The Outremer scores 70, firmly ultralight. That 2,000 kg gap shapes everything: speed, tankage capacity, interior space, and structural philosophy.

Also worth noting: the upwind sail area is identical at 106 m² on both boats. Both carry self-tacking jibs, but the Outremer splits the area differently. It runs a smaller main at 67 m² and a larger jib at 39 m², compared to the Nautitech's 75 m² main and 30 m² jib. In heavy weather, a smaller main is easier to reef. That difference is real.

Where Nautitech 44 wins

Living space and tankage

The Nautitech 44 Open's headline feature is its merged cockpit-saloon: a large exterior living area that flows into the interior without the hard boundary most cats impose. With 600 L of water and 500 L of fuel, it carries roughly 47% more water and 50–67% more fuel than the Outremer 45. For a couple crossing an ocean without a watermaker, that margin is not academic. For a full read of the interior and sailing impressions, see our review of the Nautitech 44 Open.

The SmartRoom option converts the forward starboard cabin into a utility space for tools, spares, or a washer/dryer. No other boat in this class offers that, and liveaboards who need a dedicated workshop tend to value it highly.

Simpler handling

Twin aft helm stations with direct-to-rudder steering, fixed keels, and a singlehander-friendly deck layout mean less rope in the cockpit and fewer systems to manage. The Outremer's daggerboards add winches and control lines. The Nautitech does without them entirely.

Lower entry price

Base price for the Nautitech 44 Open ran €539,280–€543,600 at 2022 launch. A new 2025 boat lists from €698,900 on Band of Boats. The Outremer 45 base was €575,000 ex-VAT as of a 2020 Sailing Anarchy forum post, but no current factory quote has been published. Equipped 2024 Outremers trade at €935,000–€940,000 inc-VAT on the used market, as of August 2026. The Nautitech is clearly the more accessible entry point.

Downsides to acknowledge

COVID-era Nautitech builds from 2021–2022 attracted reports of rudder, keel, wiring, and plumbing defects on owner forums. As one anonymous poster on Sailing Anarchy wrote in July 2024: "Nautitech were slow to admit problems but once lawyer involved fixed everything." Yachting World's test also flagged the non-slip deck surface as lacking texture in wet conditions. If you're buying a 2021–2022 hull, commission a thorough pre-purchase survey.

Where Outremer 45 wins

Speed: real, measurable speed

An SA/D ratio of 27 versus 22.8 tells you the Outremer carries its sail area on a much lighter platform. The D/L ratio of 70 against 121 confirms it. In practice, the Outremer 45 targets 80–90% of true wind speed and can reach 15+ knots under sail. In a gentle 5-knot breeze (Beaufort 2), it still moves at 4–4.5 knots. That kind of light-air performance makes a real difference on passage. You motor less, and you arrive sooner.

Draft versatility

Twin daggerboards give the Outremer 45 a boards-up draft of approximately 0.9–1.25 m (sources diverge on this figure; the official 2018 factory spec gives ~1.0 m). Boards down, draft extends to 2.01–2.15 m for genuine windward performance. The Nautitech's fixed 1.45 m keel is a reasonable compromise, but it can't match either extreme. In thin Bahamian anchorages or tight Caribbean approaches, that boards-up capability opens options the Nautitech simply cannot reach.

One caveat. The daggerboards are designed to shear off on grounding, protecting the trunks. Replacement in a remote cruising ground means haul-out, cost, and delay. Factor that into your risk calculus if you plan to gunkhole aggressively.

Construction pedigree

Vinylester resin with Divinycell core above the waterline, solid glass laminate below it, crash boxes in the bows, and carbon in high-load areas. The Outremer 45's layup reflects a builder focused on structural integrity at minimum weight. The Nautitech uses vacuum-infused polyester sandwich with Divinycell core: a sound and proven method, but not built to the same weight-optimised standard.

The La Vagabonde factor

The 2016+ Outremer 45 gained global visibility through YouTube channel Sailing La Vagabonde, which has driven both brand recognition and used-market demand. This cuts both ways. Resale values are strong, but asking prices are inflated and genuine bargains on the brokerage market are rare.

Downsides to acknowledge

The daggerboard trunks consume significant interior hull volume, limiting berth width and walkway space. Multiple cockpit winches for board operation and light-air sails create what no-frills-sailing.com described as complex line management. Fuel capacity of 300–336 L and water at ~407 L are tight for extended ocean passages without a watermaker. Factory options pricing is also steep. One prospective buyer documented on Sailing Anarchy in January 2020 that "Factory options pricing it's pretty obvious some are 2–3x aftermarket cost."

Prices compared

Price comparison between these two boats requires careful date-stamping, because public data is uneven.

Price point	Nautitech 44 Open	Outremer 45 (2016+)
Base price (new, ex-VAT)	€539,280–€543,600 (as of 2022)	€575,000 (as of 2020 SA forum — no current factory quote available)
New 2025 listing	From €698,900 (Band of Boats)	No confirmed new listing price found
Used market low (2016+ design)	~€559,000 (2023 build, iNautia)	~€605,000 (Boat Trader)
Used market high	~€938,000 (fully optioned, itBoat)	€940,000 inc-VAT (2024 build, YachtWorld)
P25 estimate	~€620,000	~€650,000
P75 estimate	~€787,000	~€730,000

All price estimates checked as of August 2026. P25 and P75 figures are approximations derived from listing cluster ranges, not from a full statistical dataset.

A critical warning for Outremer 45 shoppers: two entirely different boats share the name "Outremer 45." The Gérard Danson design (approximately 2000–2014, ~5,000 kg, 40 hulls built) is a completely different vessel from the 2016+ Barreau/Neuman redesign covered here. Listings on aggregator sites from €299,000–€324,000 almost certainly refer to old Danson hulls. Filter by year carefully.

Neither builder publishes confirmed production numbers. Nautitech's total output is not publicly disclosed. For the Outremer 45 (2016+), hull #12 was noted as a 2016 build, and rough estimates based on listing volume suggest approximately 30–50 hulls, but this is unconfirmed.

Which one for whom

Forget brand loyalty and YouTube parasocial attachments. Start with three questions.

1. How much do you weigh your sailing down? If your cruising kit, including watermaker, generator, dive gear, two kayaks, a paddleboard, and six months of provisions, pushes toward 2,000 kg of payload, the Nautitech's heavier displacement and larger tanks absorb that weight without losing its character. Load the Outremer to the same degree and you erode the very performance advantage you paid for.

2. Is passage speed a priority or a preference? If you genuinely want to average 180–200 NM days and you'll adjust your gear, provisioning, and sailing style to protect displacement numbers, the Outremer 45 is the clear choice. If you'd rather motor through a calm spell than optimise every sail change, the Nautitech's 500 L fuel tanks and commonly fitted 2×50 hp engines make that comfortable.

3. How much complexity will you maintain? Daggerboards, their trunks, their control lines, and their shear-off replacement scenarios add a layer of ownership complexity the fixed-keel Nautitech avoids entirely. If you're a mechanically confident owner who services your own boat, the Outremer's systems are manageable. If you want to minimise maintenance headcount, the Nautitech is the simpler boat.

One final caution. If you're buying a 2021–2022 Nautitech hull, budget for a rigorous pre-purchase survey covering rudders, keels, wiring, and plumbing. The COVID-era production issues are documented. If you're specifying a new Outremer, price your options independently before accepting the factory quote. The markup on electronics, solar, and batteries has been documented at 2–3× aftermarket cost.

Both of these boats will cross an ocean safely. The question is which crossing, and which life aboard, matches yours.