Rhine at Kaub: water level today
Kaub, at Rhine km 546 between Mainz and Koblenz, sits on the shallowest reach of the free-flowing Middle Rhine. Loaded barges bound for the industrial southwest have to pass it, so this one gauge sets loading limits — and low-water surcharges — for much of Rhine freight.
Last 30 days, with the official forecast
This is record-low territory: readings this month, down to -6 cm, are below the lowest low water in WSV's published statistics for the gauge (NNW, 25 cm).
Compared with the same season since 2000
In late-October, Kaub has typically read between 81 and 242 cm (the middle 80% of daily averages, 2000–2025). The lowest reading in that window was 25 cm in 2018, and the lowest at any time since 2000 was -6 cm on October 1, 2026. Every Rhine gauge on the same basis: Rhine water levels today.
From WSV's unchecked 15-minute archive, which starts January 1, 2000; the season window is a week either side of today's date in each year.
What the number means
The reading is centimeters above Kaub's local gauge zero (67.669 m above sea level (NHN), set 2019-11-01) — it is not the depth of the river. Even at GlW, the maintained fairway is 1.90 m deep; what a low reading kills is the margin that lets a barge load fully. Barges start loading less, and carriers start charging low-water surcharges, long before the gauge reaches GlW, which is why every Rhine freight story quotes this gauge.
What Kaub levels mean for barges and river cruises
There is no official low-water level at which Rhine shipping stops: below GlW, a vessel sails if its boatmaster takes responsibility for it. What changes is how much each barge can carry, and carriers publish the levels where their prices and promises change. Contargo, for example, sets its container surcharge for terminals south of Koblenz from the 5 a.m. Kaub reading on the day the barge departs. At the latest reading on this page (37 cm), its band would be by agreement; transport no longer guaranteed.
| Kaub level (5 a.m. on departure day) | Contargo low-water surcharge, EUR per laden 20' / 40' container, terminals south of Koblenz (table as shown 2026-10-21) |
|---|---|
| above 150 cm | none |
| 131–150 cm | €40 / €50 |
| 111–130 cm | €55 / €75 |
| 101–110 cm | €75 / €90 |
| 91–100 cm | €90 / €145 |
| 81–90 cm | €120 / €165 |
| 80 cm or below | by agreement; transport no longer guaranteed |
- Loads shrink long before GlW. In Contargo's own example, a 135-meter container barge that carries 5,200 tonnes at normal water loads fully only down to about 250 cm at Kaub, about half at 135 cm, and just 900 tonnes at 60 cm. (Contargo low-water brochure, 2017)
- 80 cm is a contract line, not a physical one. Contargo stops guaranteeing transport at 80 cm or below at Kaub, and Hapag-Lloyd's revised terms, effective November 1, 2026, do the same. (Contargo surcharge table, as shown 2026-10-21; Hapag-Lloyd via Container News, 2026-09-28)
- Contargo's 2017 guidance put severe limits around 40 cm. It called sailing below about 40 cm "not really reasonably possible," with some purpose-built vessels managing down to about 35 cm. That is one carrier's guidance, not a rule for all vessels. (Contargo, 2017)
- 2018, a severe low-water year: vessels on the Upper and Middle Rhine could load at most 40% to 50%, and transport performance on the traditional Rhine in the third quarter of 2018 was 27% below the same quarter of 2017. (Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine, 2019-04-30)
- 2026: Kaub read −6 cm on October 1. In the same report, the shipping company MSG gave the example of a 4,600-tonne cargo that needed 14 barges instead of 3. (dpa via transport-online, 2026-10-02)
- River cruises: the reports we found give no common Kaub cutoff for cruise ships; each line decides itinerary by itinerary, so check your operator's notices. In low water, lines swap passengers between sister ships by coach around the shallow stretch, shorten itineraries and cancel some departures, as several did in summer and autumn 2026. (Travel Market Report; Travelextra, 2026-09-27)
Surcharges are one company's published policy, quoted as an example; other carriers set their own. The current GlW at Kaub, 77 cm, is the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine's GlW 2022, in force since January 1, 2023 (it replaced 78 cm). CCNR resolution 2022-II-19.
Every official reference mark
| Mark | Level (cm) | Meaning | Today |
|---|---|---|---|
| NNW | 25 | Lowest low water in the published gauge statistics | 12 above |
| MNW | 65 | Mean low water (average of yearly lows) | 28 below |
| GlW | 77 | Equivalent low water — the agreed low-water reference; below it, the maintained fairway depth is no longer guaranteed (Kaub: GlW 2022, in force since 2023) | 40 below |
| MW | 208 | Mean water level | 171 below |
| M I | 460 | High-water Mark I — speed and position restrictions apply | 423 below |
| MHW | 544 | Mean high water (average of yearly highs) | 507 below |
| M II | 640 | High-water Mark II — navigation is suspended | 603 below |
| HSW | 640 | Highest navigable water level — navigation ceases above it | 603 below |
| HW | 719 | Highest momentary water level in the published gauge statistics | 682 below |
| HHW | 825 | Highest high water in the published gauge statistics | 788 below |
Marks are WSV's published characteristic values for the Kaub gauge. GlW and HSW are the two that move markets: below GlW, fairway depth is no longer guaranteed; above HSW, navigation stops. Marks I and II are the high-water restriction levels.
Data: PEGELONLINE (WSV), license DL-DE Zero 2.0; 15-minute raw readings, archived hourly here nightly. Forecast: WSV's official water-level forecast series for Kaub. All Rhine gauges: Rhine water levels today; Rhine, Moselle, Main and Danube: river levels today.