10 Ways to Make Money With Your Drone

Flying a drone gives you a bird’s-eye view of the world above, but it can be more than a hobby. When you earn a remote pilot certificate, you can actually transform your drone into an income tool. FAA Part 107 certification unlocks a variety of drone pilot careers, including side hustles, part-time jobs, and full-time pathways.

This guide explores 10 proven, real-world income streams that you can earn with your drone.

First, a Word on Getting Legal

You know you want to make money with a drone, but starting your drone business involves more than purchasing equipment and securing clients. Under the FAA Part 107 rule, you must earn a certificate to fly your drone for compensation or to use your drone for professional endeavors.

To be eligible for an FAA Part 107 certificate, you must:

Be 16 years old or older
Pass the aeronautical knowledge test
Apply for Part 107 Certificate through IACRA
Undergo Transportation Security Administration screening
Register your drone and pay a $5 registration fee

Even when you have earned your remote pilot certificate, there are limits that you have to abide by:

You cannot fly your drone higher than 400 feet above ground level.
Your drone should stay within your visual line of sight.

Commercial drone pilots can request Part 107 waivers if they need to deviate from certain standard Part 107 requirements. Waivers must be requested in advance and will be issued by the FAA.

It’s the Part 107 certificate that separates professional drone pilots from hobbyists who just like to fly their unmanned aircraft for enjoyment. To access the ever-growing drone pilot career pathways, you will need this powerful credential.

1. Drone Inspection Specialist

Drone inspection is a fast-growing field because it replaces dangerous manual inspection of towers, roofs, and power lines. With an FAA Part 107 certificate, you can pursue roles as a drone inspection specialist across multiple sectors, such as the roofing, utilities, telecommunications, solar, or infrastructure industries. Providing key deliverables, such as photos, videos, or thermal imagery, you can equip your clients with the data-based, visual knowledge needed to make informed decisions.

Drone pilots who work as inspection specialists sell more than footage alone. They are delivering valuable information and enabling their clients to implement risk reduction strategies. As demand for this service continues to climb, drone inspection specialists are finding that their salaries are growing as well. At this time, the average drone inspection specialist can earn anywhere from $80,000 to $100,000 annually.

2. Real Estate and Airbnb Marketing

Drone real estate photography is the most common entry point to drone pilot careers. Increasingly, homebuyers and prospective renters not only want interior photographs of a home, but they also want aerial images to gain additional context and insight into the property before they decide to move forward.

Real estate agents are becoming more aware of the fact that aerial content is tied to stronger listing performance, as these images help to generate more interest among the most motivated buyers. Once you have your commercial drone pilot certificate, you can begin reaching out to local real estate agents and property managers to connect with them and sell your services.

3. Sell Stock Footage

Every flight you take (even the ones you are embarking on just for fun) can be an opportunity to create valuable content. Begin building a portfolio of stock footage with your drone by focusing on licensable subjects, such as:

Urban skylines
Natural landscapes
Generic infrastructure

You may be able to post these images on stock platforms, where interested clients can purchase the rights to use them. Strategic placement and the use of metadata are usually necessary for success. This can become a side hustle that lets you build income over time. It’s not an overnight niche that you are going to break into and immediately begin generating significant income.

4. Roof Inspections

Roof inspections are a fast-growing application in commercial drone operations. Prior to the advent of drone technology, inspectors were forced to climb a ladder and navigate roofs to inspect them thoroughly, putting themselves at high risk of injury. Now, drone pilots can use their equipment to conduct extensive inspections and capture images that can offer insight into the roof’s integrity. It improves safety, saves time, and yields reviewable high-resolution imagery, making drone roof inspections far preferable to the manual alternative.

While demand for this service is growing everywhere, there’s been a substantial spike in severe weather regions where post-storm damage is common.

5. Construction Progress Monitoring

Construction firms operating under tight timelines and narrow budgets are finding themselves in need of a bird’s-eye view to keep an eye on their projects. In construction progress monitoring drone jobs, pilots can provide:

Refined progress updates
Stockpile monitoring services
Aerial photography and maps
Stage documentation

This career path provides a recurring revenue advantage, letting you forge lasting partnerships with local clients. It’s an ideal option for pilots looking for a stable, secure income stream.

6. Event Photography and Videography

From large-scale weddings to community festivals, aerial footage can showcase the sheer breadth and depth of events. Drone event photography provides added production value over ground cameras alone, but there are additional FAA regulations you may have to keep in mind. Under Part 107 rules, the FAA has regulations for operations over people, temporary flight restrictions, and controlled airspace.

Professionals in this arena need to fly safely and legally, not just impressively.

7. Mapping and Surveying

Drone mapping and surveying have enabled data collection that has revolutionized many industries, as it yields detailed maps, 3D models, and expert measurements. Drone pilots who specialize in mapping and surveying work closely with surveyors, engineers, farmers, and developers. It’s a niche that involves extra training, but it’s among the highest-value pathways.

8. Agriculture and Crop Monitoring

Farmers are becoming more dependent on drones to make smarter crop decisions. Agriculture drone photography can help with field monitoring, stress identification, irrigation tracking, and collecting crop health data. By contracting with drone pilots, farmers no longer have to walk fields on their own gathering data manually. Pilots can provide them with the actionable insights they need within minutes, making this an incredibly valuable service.

9. Public Safety and Emergency Response

Fire departments, law enforcement agencies, and search-and-rescue organizations are all relying on drones to improve operations. Drone pilots can provide public safety professionals with real-time views, helping them locate missing people, improve disaster monitoring, and increase situational awareness. This does involve specialized training, and this path differs because most pilots are employed by the agency itself rather than working as a contractor.

10. Tourism and Travel Content

Combining a sense of wanderlust with a passion for aerial photography, drone pilots can carve out a career in travel and tourism. Clients may include tourism boards, hotels, or local attractions, with drone pilots producing footage for destination videos, hotel advertisements, or tourism social media content. This path lets you work in scenic locations where one strong reel can define an entire brand.

Honorable Mention: Start Your Own Drone Business

Keep in mind that the drone is the tool, not the business itself, but this was certainly worth an honorable mention. Successful drone businesses solve problems, such as providing farmers with agricultural mapping that better identifies stress or offering aerial footage of events for wedding photographers whose clients want impressive footage.

To make money with a drone, you need to find your niche, build relationships, create a portfolio, and deliver consistent value.

Take the Next Step Toward Becoming a Commercial Drone Pilot

Drone photography often comes to mind as the first professional opportunity for drone pilots, but this industry is rapidly growing. With drone career opportunities in real estate, marketing, inspections, travel, construction, mapping, agriculture, and public safety, it’s easy to align your passion for drone photography with a field that interests you.

When you are building your drone business, start by creating a portfolio. Then you can expand your network in the local area and continue investing in professional development, letting you take your drone flight skills to new heights.

If you want to make money with a drone, the FAA Part 107 certificate is the starting point. MzeroA’s Remote Pilot 101 course relies on hands-on, scenario-based lessons to help you gain a complete understanding of airspace, weather, industry regulations, and safety procedures, ultimately preparing you to pass the FAA Part 107 exam with confidence.

Request more information, and discover how MzeroA Online Ground School can prepare you to fly drones commercially with confidence.