Every Level of Cruise Ship Pay — From Dishwasher to Captain
Australia CountryJordan CountryCarnival Corporation & plc Cruise GroupNorwegian Cruise Line Holdings Cruise GroupRoyal Caribbean Group Cruise GroupCarnival Cruise Line Cruise LineCosta Cruises Cruise LineDisney Cruise Line Cruise LineMSC Cruises Cruise LineNorwegian Cruise Line Cruise LinePrincess Cruises Cruise LineRoyal Caribbean Cruise Line
Cruise ship jobs ranked by pay, from the dishwasher below deck to the captain on the bridge. This cruise ship documentary ranks twenty cruise ship crew jobs by what they really pay, using company filings from Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Norwegian, the seafarer minimum wage agreed at the ILO, and real job vacancies. If you've ever wondered how much cruise ship workers make, or who gets the daily gratuity on your bill, this is the full ladder. Why does a waiter rank above the cooks? Why do so many spa, shop and casino staff work for outside companies instead of the cruise line? We follow the cruise ship captain salary, the chief engineer and the ship's doctor at the top, the stateroom attendant and bartender in the gratuity pool, and the cruise ship crew life behind every rung: shared cabins, ten-to-thirteen-hour days and contracts of up to nine months at sea. CHAPTERS 00:00 Below deck: the dish pit 00:38 The two numbers to measure every job by 02:03 #20 Galley utility 03:44 #19 Laundry and public areas 04:29 What crew don't pay for 05:46 #18 Deck crew 06:24 #17 Photographer 06:54 #16 Cook 07:26 #15 Assistant waiter 08:01 Where your daily gratuity goes 09:32 #14 Shop sales associate 10:06 #13 Casino dealer 10:28 #12 Stateroom attendant 10:55 What crew pay for at sea 11:26 #11 Bartender 11:52 #10 Waiter 12:39 #9 Musician 13:21 Who actually employs them 14:36 #8 Spa therapist 15:48 #7 Nurse 16:32 #6 Production cast 17:16 #5 Cruise director 17:42 #4 Executive chef 18:11 #3 Ship's doctor 19:27 #2 Chief engineer 19:56 #1 Captain 21:13 The best-paid job isn't on the ship 22:34 The hours, top to bottom KEY SOURCES • ILO news, 16 April 2025: https://www.ilo.org/resource/news/subcommittee-wages-seafarers-reaches-agreement-increase-seafarer-minimum • ITF, ILO minimum wage scale from 1 Jan 2026: https://www.itfseafarers.org/en/resources/ilo-minimum-wage-1-january-2026-consolidated-interpretation • Royal Caribbean Group, 2026 proxy statement (CEO pay ratio): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/884887/000088488726000017/rcl-20260417.htm • Carnival Corporation & plc, 2026 proxy statement (U.S. CEO pay ratio): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/815097/000110465926021074/tm2529359-1_def14a.htm • Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, 2026 proxy statement (pay ratio): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1513761/000110465926052146/tm261503-1_def14a.htm • OneSpaWorld, 2025 annual report (10-K): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1758488/000119312526062456/osw-20251231.htm • Royal Caribbean, onboard service gratuity FAQ: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense • Princess Cruises, shipboard careers FAQ: https://www.princess.com/careers/shipboard-cruise-jobs/faq/ Captain vacancy ($21,000/month): https://maritime-zone.com/en/vacancy/576309 Galley starting pay ($650): https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/balitambayan/pinoyabroad/940285/3-000-job-opening-sa-abroad-inalok-sa-mga-pinay-sa-pagdiriwang-ng-int-l-women-s-month/story/ FOOTAGE Company and creator footage courtesy of: Royal Caribbean Careers; Royal Caribbean; Princess Cruises; Park West Gallery; Cruise Life; TravelTouristVideos; Cruisereiziger; Jordan Bauth (CC BY); Disney Cruise Line Jobs; Cruising with Goldy; Peter John To-ong; Langyaw TV; DANIEL LUDWIG EMAN; Sea Talks; Speedy.Global; Captain Kate McCue; Carnival Cruise Line Australia; Sam Austin; Living Life on a Cruise; Costa Crociere Careers; Chinky Nava; CharlieMor'sTravel; Royal Caribbean Group Careers; Nurseatsea; Carnival Cruise Line; Travis Dykes; David Paige; The Traveling Chef; MSC Cruises; Harding Retail. Jordan Bauth, cruise ship ice-skating footage (edited excerpts), CC BY: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KN7rGXl_TmM — https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Music: "Dream Culture" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Which cruise ship job surprised you most? Subscribe to Cruise Ship Uncovered for more stories from the working side of cruise ships. Independent documentary; not affiliated with any cruise line, recruiter or union. Pay figures are sourced monthly ranges in US dollars, varying by role, ship and contract. Monthly onboard pay is not guaranteed year-round income; the captain vacancy is an advertised rate, not a confirmed mega-ship salary. #CruiseShip #CruiseShipJobs #CrewLife