For freelance yacht crew
Mark the days you're free. Hear only from checked yachts.
Get vetted once, tick the work you take and keep your dates current. Checked captains find you, and you book direct.
Your availability
Example, November 2026
Still free 1–20 Nov?
You last confirmed on 28 Sep. Captains see the date.
Free to join, free when you're booked
Our fee is paid by the yacht, never by you or from your pay. UK law and the Maritime Labour Convention don't allow charging crew for finding them work.
How it works
- Get vetted onceYour ID confirmed on a short video call, and your references asked how you work: would they hire you again, can you be trusted on board. You list your certificates and declare they're genuine, yours and current.
- Tick the work you take and set your rateIn a search, captains only find you for the types of work you tick. Your profile shows whether you've worked on sailing yachts, motor yachts or both. You set your day rate, with an optional long-job rate and minimum job length, and requests come at your listed rate.
- Mark your dates and confirm you're still freeCaptains see when you last confirmed, so a quick yes keeps your dates current.
- Hear from checked yachts, then book directEvery request comes from a captain, manager or household we have checked, with the work and the dates. You accept or decline, agree terms with the yacht, and are paid by the yacht directly, in cash or by bank transfer on your invoice.
Six types of work
- Relief
- Delivery
- Yard period
- Daywork
- Racing
- Private home
Daywork skills you can list
- Paint prep and sanding
- Painting
- Varnishing
- Fairing
- Gelcoat repair
- Polishing and detailing
- Teak care
- Carpentry
- Washing down
- Interior detailing
- Laundry
- Provisioning runs
- Engine room cleaning
Deliveries add Watch Leader and Delivery Crew to the deck roles. Racing has its own positions, from Helm to Race Cook, in Deck and Galley.
Getting paid
The request says how the yacht pays you: cash on completion or bank transfer on your invoice. After the job you and the captain agree the days worked, and the booking shows the yacht's invoice details. The yacht pays you directly. Syntor Crew never handles your pay.
Want help with the paperwork? Crew Office is an optional invoicing tool: invoice in one tap, with your details saved and payments tracked. It's separate from finding work and has no effect on search or requests.
What you need to join
In plain words. Before you're listed we confirm your ID and call your references. You declare your certificates.
- Everyone
- ID confirmed on a short video call, and references called about how you work: two, or one for daywork. Experience for the role, or the rank below if you're stepping up, confirmed by your references. No minimum sea time.
- Everyone except daywork and racing positions
- STCW Basic Safety and ENG1 or an accepted equivalent, declared by you.
Plus, by department
Daywork
Yacht work or trade experience, such as painting, varnishing, carpentry or detailing. No certificates required. STCW Basic Safety and ENG1 are recommended, and captains see who lists them.
Deck
The certificate for your rank. For deliveries, Delivery Crew: the basics above. Watch Leader, First Mate and Second Mate on a yacht under 500 GT: Yachtmaster Offshore or Ocean (commercially endorsed), OOW or higher. Ocean passages ask for Yachtmaster Ocean, OOW or higher, and bigger yachts ask for more.
Engineering
The CoC for your rank.
Interior
Food Safety Level 2 for Chief Stew and Stew.
Galley
Food Safety Level 2, and 3 sample menus including one allergen menu.
Racing positions
Deck positions: World Sailing Offshore Personal Survival. Race Cook: Offshore Personal Survival and Food Safety Level 2. STCW Basic Safety and ENG1 aren't required.
Flag-state rules may ask for more. Captains check your originals before you join.
Questions crew ask
Do I pay anything?
No. Not to join, not to be vetted, not when you're booked. The yacht pays our fee, never from your pay. Crew Office, an optional invoicing tool, is the only thing crew can pay for, and it has no effect on search, vetting or requests.
Who sees my profile?
Only captains, managers and households we have checked see your name, profile and rate. Nobody can search or browse crew without signing up. They find you in search for the work you tick and the dates you mark. You can also choose to show in Browse crew while you have no dates listed.
How do requests reach me?
They arrive in Requests in your account, with the yacht, the work, the dates and your rate. You accept or decline there.
What does vetting check?
How you work. We confirm your ID on a short video call and call your references to ask whether they'd hire you again, whether you can be trusted on board, the standard of your work and how reliable you are. After each job the captain reviews you too.
Do you keep copies of my certificates?
No. You list your certificates and declare they're genuine, yours and current. We don't check them. Captains check your originals before you join.
A captain may ask for copies for their own checks and insurance. When you accept, you choose whether to attach them or show the originals when you join. Only that captain can open them, and you can withdraw them. We don't keep copies. They're deleted 7 days after you join. If the captain saves a copy, for example for their insurer, that copy is theirs to look after.
Can I do daywork without certificates?
Yes. Daywork needs none. STCW Basic Safety and ENG1 are recommended, and captains see who lists them.
Can I take a break?
Yes. Pause your membership and captains won't see you until you resume.
Photos: Arnauld van Wambeke and Christian Palau on Pexels.