Every few months, someone asks me if DJI is finally losing its stranglehold on the drone market. With all the regulatory pressure in the U.S., the stock shortages, the competitors gaining ground, and the general doom-and-gloom predictions about Chinese drone makers — surely DJI must be slipping in the ranks of the 2025 drone market, right?
Wrong.
New data from Dedrone, a counter-drone detection company that monitors drone activity across conflict zones and operational theaters in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, reveals just how dominant DJI remains on the global stage. The numbers are stunning: DJI drones accounted for 83.48% of all drone detections in 2025.
That means more than eight out of every ten drones detected in some of the world’s most contested airspaces are made by DJI.
The detection data breakdown
Dedrone’s 2025 dataset analyzed drone detections across multiple regions and found that just three categories of drones accounted for 94.70% of all detections:
- DJI: 83.48% — The Chinese drone giant’s consumer and prosumer drones dominate operational use globally
- DIY builds: 9.82% — Home-assembled drones including FPV kits, representing a 4.3x increase from 2024
- Autel: 1.40% — DJI’s closest competitor in the consumer space barely registers
The remaining 5.3% is spread across dozens of other manufacturers. This concentration means that today, the overwhelming majority of drones in operational theaters come from DJI, with DIY builds also coming close.
What’s particularly striking is that while DIY builds have grown significantly year-over-year — indicating the drone threat landscape is evolving and diversifying — DJI’s dominant position remains essentially unchanged. Operators around the world continue choosing DJI platforms for their reliability, performance and availability.
Why DJI’s dominance matters
Regardless of what’s happening in U.S. boardrooms or regulatory hearings, DJI’s global market position is as strong as ever.
The company maintains an estimated 70-80% share of the global civilian drone market, with some estimates putting it at 85% in the U.S. consumer market (when product is available) and over 90% in certain sub-categories. Even after years of regulatory scrutiny, bans from government use, addition to various U.S. entity lists, difficulty getting shipped to the U.S. and aggressive lobbying from American competitors, DJI remains the undisputed market leader.
And here’s the thing: this isn’t just about hobbyists filming sunsets. Dedrone’s data generally captures drones being used in serious operational contexts — border security, conflict zones, military applications. These are environments where reliability, performance and availability matter most. And operators in these scenarios overwhelmingly choose DJI.
What the competition looks like
The Dedrone data shows just how far behind DJI’s competitors really are:
Autel Robotics has positioned itself as the main alternative to DJI, offering high-performance camera drones and enterprise platforms. But at just 1.40% of detections in Dedrone’s dataset, Autel’s real-world operational use barely registers. The company has made gains in some markets, but it’s nowhere close to challenging DJI’s dominance.
Skydio, the American drone maker that’s often held up as the great hope for U.S. competition, doesn’t even appear in Dedrone’s top categories. While Skydio has succeeded in carving out a niche in government and enterprise markets (particularly for autonomous inspection and first responder applications), its impact on the global drone landscape remains minimal.
DIY builds represent the most interesting competitive dynamic. At 9.82% of detections — a 4.3x increase from 2024 — homemade FPV drones are clearly gaining traction, particularly in military contexts. The war in Ukraine has accelerated this trend, with both sides using cheap DIY drones for reconnaissance and attack missions.
What this means for the future
The Dedrone data suggests that despite all the regulatory pressure, protectionist legislation, and billions in subsidies for American drone companies, DJI’s position as the global drone leader remains secure.
Yes, the U.S. market may continue to evolve as government and enterprise customers are pushed toward American alternatives. Yes, DIY builds will continue growing, particularly in military contexts. And yes, competitors like Autel, Parrot and Skydio will continue finding niches.
But the fundamental reality remains: DJI makes drones that people want to use. They’re reliable, capable, well-designed and competitively priced. The company has built an ecosystem that’s hard to replicate, with intuitive software, extensive accessory options, and global service networks.
The U.S. can’t ban its way to competitiveness
For years, the narrative in Washington has been that if we just restrict DJI enough, American drone companies will rise to fill the gap. The Dedrone data suggests this strategy has serious limitations.
You can ban DJI from government procurement. You can add them to entity lists. You can create customs delays and regulatory hurdles. But as long as DJI continues producing superior products at competitive prices, and as long as the global market remains open, DJI will continue dominating.
The only way American companies can truly compete is by building better drones — not by lobbying for protections. Skydio has made progress on autonomy and obstacle avoidance. Other American drone companies are finding niches in specialized applications. But none have matched DJI’s combination of performance, features, ecosystem and price.
Until they do, expect DJI to keep showing up in detection data, market share reports, and operational theaters around the world — no matter what happens in Washington.
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