Do you hear that buzzing, piercing sound when you're out and about? Maybe it's a drone exploring the world. Thinking about buying a drone? Here we provide advice on buying a drone and how much it costs.
Are you thinking about joining the drone hobby world?
Drones come in many different types, and most people think of them as flying cameras. But there's more to them than that.
Drones come in all sizes and types, and they have different uses. To put it simply, there are toy drones, consumer camera drones, high-end photography drones, professional commercial drones, police drones, and more.
How much does a drone cost?
Drone prices vary depending on the model, features, and manufacturer.
Generally speaking, entry-level consumer drones cost between a few hundred and a thousand dollars. Professional or commercial drones can cost thousands of dollars or more. Of course, there are also some customized, high-end drones that are even more expensive.
In short, the price of a drone depends on the features and functions you need and what you plan to do with it.
Toy drones for kids: $30-$150
These drones are small and some can even stay on your fingertips. These mini drones are often called toy drones and usually cost between $30 and $150.
Toy drones are designed as simple models for basic flight. They are simple and safe to operate. They are the best companion toys for children around 10 years old. They allow children to learn about drone flight knowledge in advance and have entertainment and outdoor fun.
The characteristics of toy drones are that they are easy to learn to fly and master flight experience. At the same time, these drones have a short flight time of no more than 20 minutes, and a limited flight range, always within the line of sight.
Drone novices can also start learning from this type of drone, which is a good practice. More complex and more feature-rich advanced drones are more expensive. Try an entry-level camera drone first, and then choose others.
Mid-range consumer camera drones for adults:$300-$900
This type of drone is prepared for drone novices or drone enthusiasts. If you have tried toy drone flying for a while, then the next step is a mid-range consumer camera drone.
The price of a mid-range consumer camera drone may reach around $300-$900. Drones have great changes in image quality, flight performance, and image transmission performance. Drone cameras are very important. Drone beginners can use this type of drone to practice drone photography and have fun flying.
Advanced aerial photography drones:$1,000-$2,000
Advanced aerial photography drones are beginning to pursue camera quality and flight stability as well as image transmission performance. The drone camera's CMOS, bit depth, gimbal stabilization, video resolution, filter selection, aperture, focal length, night photography capabilities, remote control signal stability, and good real-time image transmission are all important factors to consider when considering aerial photography drones.
Excellent aerial photos and videos are inseparable from excellent aerial drones. The price of this type of drone can reach more than $1,000-$2,000.
Professional commercial drones: Over $5,000
The commercialization of drones has brought immeasurable positive benefits to many industries. In aerial photography, film shooting, wedding photography, and real estate photography, drones have a unique perspective and take beautiful photos and videos that are even more eye-catching.
Commercial industrial drones also serve industries such as inspection, mapping, agriculture, and package delivery. Commercial drones speed up processes, improve efficiency, and reduce costs. The price of this type of drone is $5,000 and up.
Police Drones: Over $8,000
Police agencies are beginning to deploy drones for daily tasks to improve efficiency processes. Drones can act as first responders, quickly arriving at the scene and providing real-time situational awareness and feedback.
Police drones are used for tasks such as aerial border patrols, crime scene surveillance, search and rescue missions, emergency response, and road traffic enforcement. Drones carry more sensors and payloads to support more tasks. The price of police drones can reach $8,000 and up.
FPV Racing Drones: $150-$2,000
FPV racing drones are drones that perceive the surrounding environment from a first-person perspective, which will bring drone pilots a thrilling visual experience, as lightweight racing drones can reach speeds of 100 mph or even higher.
FPV racing drones are designed for speed and agility, and drone prices range from $150 to $500. The video quality of these racing drones is not very good. They are made for thrills only. Entry-level racing drones cost between $100 and $250, and high-quality FPV drones usually start at more than $2,000.
How much should I spend on a drone?
If taking amazing aerial photos and videos is your main goal, consider investing in a camera drone. Generally speaking, for about $800, a drone novice can get a true 4K camera drone with a flight time of up to 30 minutes, a transmission distance of up to 10km, a three-axis gimbal, three-way obstacle avoidance, and active follow-up shooting.
Autel Robotics EVO Nano+ Drone Premium Bundle
$799.00 USD
Top camera drone recommendations: DJI Inspire 2, DJI Mavic 2 Pro, Autel EVO II Pro V3.
Cost-effective consumer camera drone recommendations: DJI Mini 4 Pro, Autel EVO Nano Plus, DJI Air 2S.
| Drone Model | Maximum Flight Time | Maximum Range | Maximum Video Resolution | Price |
| DJI Inspire 2 | 27 Mins | 7KM | 5.2@30fps | $2,999 |
| DJI Mavic 2 Pro | 31 Mins | 18 KM | 4K@30fps | $1,499 |
| Autel EVO II Pro V3 | 40 Mins | 15 KM | 6K@30fps | $2,099 |
| Autel EVO Lite Plus | 40 Mins | 12 KM | 6K@30fps | $1,399 |
| Autel EVO Nano Plus | 28 Mins | 10 KM | 4K@30fps | $799 |
| DJI Air 2S | 31 Mins | 12 KM | 5.4@30fps | $999 |
All the hidden costs of drones
Purchasing a drone is only the first step. You also need to consider the costs of drone registration, drone pilot license, drone repair and replacement, drone additional accessories, drone insurance, etc.
Simply put,
In the United States, drones under 250g do not need to be registered. Recreational drones over 250g only cost $5 to register.
Once a drone is used for commercial flights, the drone pilot needs to obtain a flight license, and it will cost $175 to take the Part 107 exam at an FAA-authorized test center. There may also be some learning costs in between.
Related More: Drones for Commercial Flying: How to Get a Drone License
How much does drone insurance cost?
Drone insurance refers to an important guarantee for protecting and claiming for accidents caused by drones that damage your property and personnel. We all know that drone operations inevitably involve certain risks. If we don't have drone insurance, our losses will only be maximized.
Autel Drone has prepared Autel Robotics Care for Autel users, which is a guarantee for compensation and replacement of drones when accidents occur.
The annual premium for drone insurance is about $500-750. Autel Robotics Care is priced according to the model of different aircraft.
How much does it cost to replace drone accessories?
To make drone aerial photography more exciting, you can use some filters to help you. For example, UV filters and ND filters cost about $60-100.
Drone accessories also include drone remote controls, drone batteries, drone blades, drone chargers, drone multi-chargers, drone backpacks and other accessories. It costs about $300 or more to buy drone accessories.
How much does it cost to DIY a drone?
Flying drones is fun. Should I choose to buy a drone or DIY one? For drone novices, buying a drone is better and more worthwhile than DIYing one. For those who are familiar with drone systems, buying cheap spare parts to assemble a drone, the cost of a DIY drone is even less than $100.
Can I make money with drones?
Buying advanced drones is expensive, so can I develop drones into my career and use drones to make money to return my investment?
The answer is yes. Drone commercial photography is lucrative. When you have enough flying skills and aerial photography skills, you can use a drone with a high-resolution camera to provide services for real estate photography, wedding photography, and advertising photography, and you can earn up to hundreds of dollars at a time.
The commercialization of drones does not stop there. RTK drones can also be used for surveying and mapping, thermal imaging drones can also be used for day and night inspections, cargo drones can be used for last-mile transportation, and agricultural drones can help farm management, crop irrigation, and so on. If you have a fleet of drones, you can also conduct drone shows, and the cost of a drone show can be as high as $15,000 or even more.
Let drones make more profits for you.
Related More: How To Make Drones Make Money For You
FAQ:
How much does a toy drone cost?
The price of a toy drone ranges from $30 to $90, depending on the size of the drone (small drones are often cheaper than large drones), functions, and brand.
How much does a military drone cost?
Most military drones range from a few thousand dollars to tens of millions of dollars, and their power and technology are very advanced.
How much does a delivery drone cost?
The price of a delivery drone ranges from a few thousand dollars to $60,000, depending on the size, cargo capacity, and other functions.
How much does a surveying drone cost?
Surveying drones are often equipped with RTK modules, radars, high-quality cameras, etc., and the cost of the drone is more than $2,000.
How much does an agricultural drone cost?
Agricultural drones are large in size and advanced in function, and their prices range from $10,000 to more than $20,000. For most farmers, renting an agricultural drone is more cost-effective than buying one.
How much does a large drone cost?
Large drones cost between $48,000 and $80,000, depending on many factors such as size, specifications, materials used, flight performance, etc.
How much does a thermal drone cost?
Thermal imaging drones are usually equipped with visible light cameras and thermal imagers, which can be used for day and night inspections and search and rescue. The price of thermal imaging drones is $5,000 and above.
How much does drone deer recovery cost?
Drones also play a positive role in wildlife monitoring and management. Thermal imaging drone hunting can be used for deer recovery work. Professional organizations charge between $250 to $500 for a drone deer recovery. The cost of purchasing a thermal imaging drone is around $5,000.
