When shopping for drones, we understand you probably have a budget, we certainly understand that you want to get into flying quadcopters and other fun drones without breaking the bank. To this end, we took some time to think about the drones that should prove worth your time, and all for under $100. In this case we mean ‘cheap’ as in inexpensive, so here they are, the best cheap drones.
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- 5 - Minutes
- No camera
- 7 - MPH
- 150 - ft
The Hubsan H111 is one of the best nano drones for flying around the house. It is a tiny machine that fits in the palm... -
- 10 - Minutes
- Optional
- 11 - MPH
- 100 - Meters
If you are looking for a solid starter drone, an inexpensive quadcopter for beginners, the Hubsan H107 series of drones is a great start. -
- 10 - Minutes
- 720p - 30FPS
- 11 - MPH
- 100 - ft
An excellent starter drone, the Syma X5C is resilient, reliable and easy to operate. Nothing fancy here, just a simple toy-class drone to practice flying... -
- 13 - Minutes
- 720p - 30FPS
- 18 - MPH
- 100 - Meters
The Ryze Tello is one of the most capable and versatile mini drones around, enjoy different designs, code your own flight features, or just fly... -
- 10 - Minutes
- 720p - 30FPS
- 11 - MPH
- 300 - Meters
The Hubsan H502S Desire is a great starter drone. It offers stable basic flight and some GPS functionality, usually unheard of in a sub-$100 drone.
For our regular readers, this list has been broken out from our Cheap drones guide – see that list if you want some tips on how to fly.
Best drones under $100
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Cheap drone guide – before you buy
I know we’ve mentioned this, our Cheap drones guide is our unofficial quadcopter flying guide. It’s packed full of tips and tricks to help the first time pilot understand what drones are all about, what they are capable of doing and what obstacles you will face to get into the air. If you are buying your first drone today, I urge you to check out our guide before you buy.
What cheap drone should I buy?
Good news for you, we have been building best drone lists to help you figure out what to spend your hard earned money on. We have a big list of the best consumer grade drones, regardless price, we have a list of great drones in the under $500 group, and more, but today we are keeping things to the very affordable under $100 range.
Things to know before you fly
- You must register your drone with the FAA before you fly
- You must affix your drone registration number to your craft
- Coming soon: The FAA will require you to pass a test before you fly your drone
- You must acquire your Part 107 certificate if you are to receive any compensation for your flight
- You must follow all of the FAA’s airspace rules if you are flying outdoors
- Hobby flights have different requirements from commercial flights
- In the eye’s of the FAA, drones are aircraft. Period.
- You need to acquire authorization to fly in controlled airspace
With that, let’s take a look at the drones!
