What Year Is My Mercury Outboard?
Type the two-letter year code from your Mercury outboard's serial number decal and get the year it was made, using the table in Mercury's own manual.
On the serial number decal, the year code is the two characters at the bottom right, under the model designation — letters such as BX in Mercury’s manual example. Your owner’s manual shows where the decal sits on your engine.
Year code BX
Manufactured in 2020
About 6 years old
B = 2, X = 0 → 20. Mercury's code gives the last two digits of the year; the most recent year that isn't in the future is shown.
Mercury’s year code table
| Letter | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | K | X |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digit | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 0 |
What this page cannot tell you
The model year a dealer sold it as, the horsepower, or parts compatibility. Mercury does not publish a table that turns the serial number itself into a year; for parts and records, give a Mercury dealer the full serial and model numbers.
How to find what year your Mercury outboard was made
- Find the serial number decal. It lists the serial number, the model designation and the year manufactured.
- Read the year box. Two characters at the bottom right — usually letters such as BX.
- Type them in. Each letter stands for a digit: A=1 … H=8, K=9, X=0.
- Read the year. BX is 20, so 2020.
10 situations where knowing your outboard's year helps
Buying a used boat
A listing that says '2020 Mercury' can be checked against the decal in a minute.
Ordering parts
Parts lists are often split by year; know it before you call the counter.
Insuring or registering the boat
Forms ask for the engine's year.
Pricing an engine to sell
Year is one of the first things buyers ask.
Checking warranty eligibility
Coverage runs for a set number of years from purchase; the build year is a starting fact.
Finding the right owner's manual
Mercury manuals are issued by model and year.
Reading a decal you don't understand
Letters in the year box are a code, not part of the model name.
Matching a remote or rigging
Controls and harnesses can change between years.
Records for a fleet or rental boats
Log each engine's year from its decal.
Settling a disagreement
The decal code is Mercury's own record of the build year.
Where the code comes from
The table is printed in Mercury Marine's Operation, Maintenance and Installation Manual for the 15/20 EFI FourStroke (8M0165094, © 2019), read on the date shown on the result. Its serial number decal callouts are 'a - Serial number, b - Model designation, c - Year manufactured', and it says: 'The serial number decal lists the year of manufacture as an alpha code. This code can be deciphered into a corresponding number using the following table.' The table is A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4, E=5, F=6, G=7, H=8, K=9, X=0, with the examples BX = 2020 and AG = 2017.
Each letter is one digit of the two-digit year. The page converts the two letters to digits and gives the most recent year that is not in the future; the manual also prints 'HK = 2089', which by the same table is the digits 8 and 9. A code that reads as a future year is reported as an error rather than pushed back a century.
If your decal shows two digits instead of letters, they are entered as-is.
Limits: the code is read from the decal, not from the serial number — Mercury does not publish a table that turns the serial number itself into a year. The table cited is from one Mercury manual; check that your decal has a two-character year code in the same place. A missing or unreadable decal needs a Mercury dealer, who can look the engine up by serial number. This site is not affiliated with Mercury Marine.
Sources
- Mercury Marine — 15/20 EFI FourStroke Operation, Maintenance and Installation Manual (2019) — Serial decal callouts and Model Year Production Code table
Frequently asked questions
How do I tell what year my Mercury outboard is?
Read the two characters in the year box at the bottom right of the serial number decal and convert them with Mercury's table: A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4, E=5, F=6, G=7, H=8, K=9, X=0.
What does BX mean on a Mercury outboard?
B is 2 and X is 0, so BX is 2020 — Mercury's own example.
What does AG mean?
A is 1 and G is 7: 2017, also Mercury's example.
Can I get the year from the serial number itself?
Not from a published table. Mercury's manual points to the year code on the decal; a Mercury dealer can look up the full record by serial number.
Why are there no I or J letters?
Mercury's table uses only A to H, K and X — ten letters for the ten digits.
Where is the serial number decal?
Mercury's owner's manual for your model shows where it is on the engine. The decal lists the serial number, model and year code.
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