Trump-Class Nuclear Battleship Program Will Cost $275 Billion

The potential cost of the U.S. Navy’s program to procure new Trump-class nuclear battleships is estimated at $275 billion.

This is stated in a report by the U.S. Congressional Budget Office.

According to the report, the first Trump-class battleship, the USS Defiant, will cost $23.4 billion.

U.S. President announced the return to the battleship concept in the U.S. Navy for the first time on September 30, 2025.

In December, the Trump administration announced its intention to build a new class of large surface combatants as part of the Golden Fleet initiative, aimed at reviving the American shipbuilding industry.

According to the report, if built, the 35,000-metric-ton nuclear-powered battleship would become the most heavily armed surface vessel ever built by the U.S. Navy, equipped with anti-aircraft, anti-ship, and surface-to-surface missiles, hypersonic missiles, nuclear-powered cruise missiles, large lasers, and a railgun (electromagnetic cannon).

“If the ship is built according to these specifications, it will become the largest surface combatant in the world and will surpass in size any surface combatant built since World War II,” the report states.

The Navy projects that between 2028 and 2056, it will build 15 “Trump”-class missile battleships, with each of the subsequent 14 costing $18 billion.

By comparison, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the U.S. Navy’s lead nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, cost approximately $13.3 billion.

Between 2028 and 2056, the Navy is expected to build one battleship roughly every two years, while continuing to produce two DDG-51-class destroyers per year.

Last March, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report detailing two decades of progress in U.S. shipbuilding. According to the GAO, not enough ships have been built, newly built ships are not performing as expected, and ships are being delivered three years later than ordered.

The report also notes that, over time, the transition to nuclear power will reduce the operating costs of battleships due to the elimination of the need for fuel.