The best DJI Lito alternatives — including 'your best first drone', and one serious curve-ball option

There's a winning new affordable drone on the market. But while the outstanding DJI Lito has winged its way to the UK and Australia, thanks to that pesky DJI ban, US shoppers are currently missing out. If you live in the US and are looking for a budget-friendly drone to buy now (or even if you're in the UK and want to explore all your options), I've rounded up the best Lito alternatives below.

The main model to consider is the Lito's predecessor, the DJI Mini 4K, which at time of writing holds the #2 spot in TechRadar's best drone ranking. It packs some impressive specs for an affordable price, and is an especially strong choice for beginners (we crowned it "your best first drone"). You can see exactly how it matches up against its replacement in our DJI Lito X1 vs DJI Mini 4K comparison.

For content creators looking to capture short selfie video clips and photos for social media, the obvious choice is the DJI Neo 2. It's compact, simple and wallet-friendly. And if you're looking to steer clear of DJI altogether, the Potensic Atom 2 is well worth a look.

Finally, there's a curve-ball option from TechRadar's Cameras editor Tim Coleman. "A left-field alternative is a 360 camera with a long selfie stick — you can get drone-like effects with those," he explains. You could pick any option from TechRadar's best 360 cameras guide, but for those seeking to keep the price down, Tim suggests the Insta360 Invisible selfie stick paired with the Insta360 X3 camera — this model has been upgraded twice over (with the X4 and X5) but it's still available, capable, and at this point very affordable. Who needs a Lito anyway?

DJI Lito alternatives