This is the most common question we get and the most common thing custom flag suppliers get wrong, usually by going bigger.

The convention

Roughly half an inch of fly for each foot of the boat’s overall length. A thirty-foot boat lands around a fifteen-inch burgee; a forty-footer around twenty.

For an ensign-sized flag the rule of thumb is about double that — an inch of fly per foot.

Why bigger is not better

An oversized burgee does not read as generous. It reads as wrong, in the same way an oversized courtesy flag does, and it is noticed by exactly the people the flag is meant to signal to.

It also flies badly: too much cloth for the rig means it wraps and it wears faster.

Why clubs need more than one size

Club fleets are not uniform. A single burgee size across boats from twenty to fifty feet is right on almost none of them.

Two or three size bands cover most clubs comfortably, and once they are on file a member simply orders the right one.

Where it is flown

Masthead or starboard spreader, depending on the rig and the club’s own practice.

It is worth confirming your club’s convention before ordering, because it can influence which hoist finish is easiest to live with.