The Merit 25 is an American trailerable sailboat that was designed by Paul Yates as a Midget Ocean Racing Club (MORC) racer and first built in 1978.

It has a fractional sloop rig, a raked stem, a slightly reverse transom, an internally mounted spade-type rudder controlled by a tiller and a fixed fin keel.

[4] Accommodations include a forward "V"-berth and two main cabin berths that extend under the cockpit to save space.

"[3] In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "according to one unproven but not necessarily false story, a J/24 disappeared into designer/builder Paul Yates’ garage in 1978, and some months later reappeared as the first Merit 25.

The two designs are indeed similar in many ways, But the Merit is judged by many to be more comfortable, faster in light air, and less expensive—at least in the San Francisco Bay area, where she was spawned.

Worst features: Merit 25s that have been raced hard for a number of years sometimes develop an unusual structural problem: the keel begins to flex at the point of attachment to the hull, requiring a major reinforcement job.

Despite relatively simple control systems, the Merit has the durability and flexibility for comfortable, all-season sailing in the Bay Area, where typical wind speeds can range from near zero to above 25 knots.