Human-powered watercraft are watercraft propelled only by human power, instead of being propelled by wind power (via one or more sails) or an engine.

The three main methods of exerting human power are:

While most human-powered watercraft use buoyancy to maintain their position relative to the surface of the water, a few, such as human-powered hydrofoils and human-powered submarines, use hydrofoils, either alone or in addition to buoyancy.

Paddled watercraft, or paddlecraft, uses one or more handheld paddles, each with a widened blade on one or both ends, to push water and propel the watercraft.. Commonly seen paddlecrafts include:

Pedals are attached to a crank and propelled in circles, or to a treadle and reciprocated,^{[citation needed]} with the feet. The collected power is then transferred to the water with a paddle wheel, flippers, or to the air or water with a propeller.

Pedaled craft include:

A pole is held with both hands and used to push against the bottom.

Poled craft include: