Velocity Made Good (VMG) (VMG)

The component of a vessel’s velocity in a specified target direction.

In sailing, VMG often means progress directly upwind or downwind and combines boat speed with the angle to the true-wind axis. Navigation instruments may instead label speed towards a waypoint as VMG, so the reference direction must be identified.

Optimising VMG does not always mean pointing closest to the objective or sailing at maximum speed. Current, leeway, tacking or gybing losses, wind shifts and route constraints alter actual progress, and different instruments may calculate water- or ground-referenced values.