How we compare ships
The scope of the rankings
The Top 100 pages rank the vessels in this directory, not an exhaustive world registry. Coverage currently concentrates on large container ships and cruise ships, with historic supertankers and selected specialist vessels. The collection will expand as records are reviewed. Recent deliveries with unresolved particulars are held out.
The default view is all-time. The active filter includes independently checked active vessels and vessels listed in a source’s completed fleet, labeled “Listed active”. It should not be read as a fresh survey of every ship’s operational status.
Measurements and ties
Length is reported overall length. Pioneering Spirit uses hull length, excluding projecting equipment. Floating facilities such as Prelude are listed separately and excluded from the ship Top 100. Gross tonnage (GT) measures enclosed volume, not mass. Historical gross register tonnage (GRT) is not substituted for GT.
Equal reported measurements share a rank. Names are ordered alphabetically within a tie. A Top 100 table shows 100 entries, so a tie can continue beyond the cutoff. Source precision is retained; rounded lengths can create ties or small differences that would change with a different register.
Evidence and review
The initial catalog is compiled from Wikipedia’s completed container-ship and cruise-ship lists, with a source on every profile. Additional references from the tables are retained for further checking. The detailed Seawise Giant article and selected leading vessels have additional independent checks. We do not describe the entire catalog as independently verified.
Imported drafts are kept separate from published records. Ambiguous recent deliveries, missing dimensions and source conflicts are recorded during review. Unknown values stay unassigned. A ship’s listed year can mean delivery or first service, depending on its source.
Position reports
AISStream supplies new reports for vessels with individually reviewed MMSI identities. The key remains on the server. The map labels receipt time, marks older reports and never invents a position for a ship without a report. Coverage gaps are normal. Scrapped and lost vessels are excluded.