Before you start racking up sea days and OT, you need to figure out why you’re really out there. Everyone signs on for different reasons — to pay off debt, adventure, supplement a pension, a career pivot and your strategy depends on your goal. If you don’t define the mission early, you’ll drift financially, no matter how much you make.

Most CIVMARs fall into a few familiar buckets:

The Young Academy Grad: Congrats, you’ve made it. After four long years of hearing, “This is a great place to be from, not a great place to be,” you’re finally free and ready to take full advantage of your newfound freedom and income. Now that you’ve got a shiny new license in your pocket and a real paycheck on the way, it’s time to capitalize. Whether you’re looking to knock out student loans, save for a down payment or build a financial buffer before going shoreside, your mission is simple: extract maximum value from your time at sea. Maybe you're fulfilling your Kings Point obligation. Maybe you just want to sail long enough to say you made Chief Engineer or Captain. Either way, your window is short. The target is 3 to 7 years of focused saving and investing before you pivot to something more stable (or at least better catered to your long-term goals).

The Young Entry Level Mariner: College wasn’t for you — fair enough. Maybe you wanted to skip the debt, make real money and see the world. I commend you. This is probably your first real job, and you’re already making more than you did flipping burgers or working that summer construction gig. It feels good and it should. But now comes the hard part: not blowing it.  Like the young academy grad, you need to figure out your timeline. Are you out here to become a Captain or is this just a way to make some money before moving on to something else? Either way, the earlier you make that call, the more effectively you can get to your goal. You’ve got a golden opportunity here, real income, low expenses and time on your side. Your goal is simple: build a financial foundation . That means saving your first $50K–$100K, investing early and avoiding lifestyle creep like your future depends on it — because it does. Play your cards right, and you’ll be decades ahead of your peers before they even finish college.

The Retired Navy CIVMAR: You just couldn’t stay away, could you? You salty SOB. Maybe you’re out here for love of the game, or maybe that pension just needs a little topping off. Either way, you swapped uniforms but stayed at sea. Now you’re getting a taste of something different: more money, fewer inspections, and a lot more liberty. MSC pays better than the Navy, but don’t let the pay bump distract you from the mission. This is your chance to save while taking full advantage of your veteran benefits . Between your pension, VA perks and TSP access, you’re in a rare position to hit financial goals faster than most — if you stay focused. You’ve already done your time. This next stretch should be about efficiency : Finish strong financially, max out the TSP or an IRA while you still can, and set yourself up to never have to work again.

The Lifer: May God help you. You signed up for the long haul — the full Monty. A full MSC career comes with serious tradeoffs, time away, stress, wear and tear, but it also enables serious financial power. Consistent high income, low living expenses and government benefits make this a serious wealth-builder. The key? Don't coast. Max out your TSP every year. Invest smartly while your expenses are low. Take liberty, not liability. If you stay focused, you’ll retire with a pension, a loaded TSP, and more freedom than most people ever get — not bad for a job that pays you to see the world. Just don’t forget to build a life worth retiring to.

Once you know which bucket you fall into, it’s time to work backwards. Set real targets, not vague ideas. How much do you want to save for a down payment? How much debt do you need to eliminate? What’s your retirement number? Figure out your goal , your timeline and how much from each paycheck needs to go toward it. Break it down. Make it real. Too many mariners head to sea with nothing more than a hope and a prayer and that’s not enough. MSC will take your time either way. Make damn sure you’re getting something back for it. It’s a race against the clock. Don’t burn out, get injured or lose your sanity before you hit your numbers. No mariner should look back and feel like they spent years at sea with nothing to show for it.

Know your number. Then work every ship toward it.

Budgeting can feel impossible, especially if MSC is your first real job or you’re living the true CIVMAR lifestyle. You’ll hear the usual financial advice: “Build an emergency fund with 3–6 months of living expenses!” But when your expenses are basically zero, how the hell are you supposed to calculate that? You hear about inflation, but you haven’t seen the inside of an American grocery store in six months. Eggs are still free-99 on the mess deck. Gas prices? Couldn’t tell you — the ship just keeps moving. Still, you need structure. Start by reviewing your last 2–3 months ashore and use real receipts to estimate your land-based costs — housing, food, transportation, fun, and recurring bills. That average becomes your shore-side burn rate : the number that tells you how long you can afford to be off and how much you should be saving while you’re out. If you don’t want to sail forever, you need to know what life costs when you’re not at sea. Those expenses will be waiting for you when your ship pulls in — permanently.

I can’t stress this enough: set all of this up before you get on a ship. Once you’re underway, everything becomes harder — logging into accounts, calling customer service, verifying IDs, or getting through 2-factor authentication. Most financial sites aren’t built for people bouncing between time zones on crappy ship internet. Get your accounts in order while you're still ashore, especially your TSP (Thrift Savings Plan) and any other brokerage or IRA accounts.

Why it matters: Compound Interest Is Your Safety Blanket

When it comes to building wealth, time is your greatest asset. And if you're a young mariner, you’re sitting on a rare opportunity to front-load your future. The 2025 TSP contribution limit is $23,000 a year — roughly $885 per paycheck. If you were to max out your TSP from age 21 to 25 while you’re sailing, then scale back to a more typical $500/month after coming ashore, your retirement account could potentially grow to over $10 million by age 65.

And that doesn’t even account for government matching contributions — which would only boost that total further.

Now compare that to someone who starts with $500/month at age 21 and never takes advantage of the high-earning, low-expense years at sea. They might end up with around $5 million by retirement — still impressive, but a far cry from what’s possible with early action and a plan.

NOTE: Just to be clear — these numbers are for illustration only. Your actual results depend on your own situation, investment choices, and the market. But the point stands: starting early is a massive advantage. THIS IS NOT INVESTMENT ADVICE.

That early burst of savings, just 5 aggressive years, gives you a huge head start. That’s your career safety blanket. It gives you freedom, options, and peace of mind long after you head ashore. The sooner you set it up, the more powerful it becomes.

MSC pays well — especially with OT, penalty pay, and stacked incentives. But don’t mistake that peak paycheck for a permanent lifestyle. It’s easy to start shopping Zillow like a baller after one paycheck with 110 hours of overtime and ammo pay. But remember: this level of income is temporary for most, and nearly every shoreside job will come with a pay cut. So, before you start stretching your lifestyle to match your highest paycheck:

• Do the math. What does life actually cost when you’re ashore?

• Run the numbers on your future income, not your best sailing month.

• Don’t spend what you’ll need to land soft.

Yes, enjoy your vacation. Take the trip. Buy something nice (like a T-shirt from CIVSail.com). Live a little. But put some guardrails in place. Spend after you save, not instead of it. If MSC is just a means to an end, don’t project your future off sea pay. Understand that you are racing against the clock in a limited earning window. Knock down the house budget, drive a car that doesn’t burn your whole budget, and give future-you the flexibility to walk away on your own terms.

This isn’t the military. You’re not under contract. You don’t owe anyone 20 years. The real win is being able to walk away when you decide, not because you're burned out, broke, or desperate for a change. Too many mariners stay longer than they planned, chasing one more big paycheck, until they are trapped. Build your financial life so that when you’re ready to go —whether it’s after one ship or twenty — you can walk off that gangway with options, confidence and something to show for your time at sea.

Freedom isn’t found in your paycheck — it’s in your exit strategy. 

What funds should you pick in your TSP?
How much do you actually need for a down payment?
Should you buy back your military time?
What should you invest your extra cash in?

It’s a lot to figure out — and for the love of God, please don’t take your financial advice from that one AB. You’re making real money — get real help. At CIVSail.com, we’ve built a network of professionals who understand what it means to be underway for 10 months at a time. You won’t have to explain what MSC is, or say, “No, I’m actually not in the Navy.” You get to skip the backstory and get down to business.

You went to school to drive ships and fix engines, not to decode federal retirement systems or navigate the stock market. You wouldn’t take sailing advice from a weekend 6-pack captain…So why would you trust your retirement plan to the sea lawyer?  Let someone who specializes in this stuff help you lock in the reward you’ve earned. The earlier you start, the easier it gets.

And if you’re not sure what to do next — ask. That’s what professionals are for. Fill out the form below to connected with someone in the CIVSail.com Network and start charting your financial future today!