The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the U.S. Navy’s planned fleet of 15 “Trump-class” nuclear-powered battleships would cost about $275 billion to build. In a report, the CBO projects that the first ship would cost approximately $23.4 billion, expressed in 2026 dollars. The remaining ships, purchased through 2056, are estimated to average about $18 billion each.
Both sources describe the program as one of the most expensive in U.S. naval procurement history. They note that the CBO’s cost estimates place the first hull at a higher per-ship price than earlier major warship programs cited for comparison, including the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier, which is often referenced as costing about $13.3 billion in 2008 dollars.
The estimates come from CBO analysis and focus on procurement costs across the fleet rather than any later operations or life-cycle spending. The CBO figures are presented as planning benchmarks for budgetary and policy discussions.
