AUW: All-Up Weight and Why It Matters
AUW (all-up weight) is everything that leaves the ground: frame, electronics, battery, HD camera, GPS, mounts, strap — the lot. Spec sheets love quoting weight without battery; the number physics cares about is AUW.
In short: AUW = dry weight + battery + anything strapped on. The difference matters because the battery alone is often a third of the total - a 5" quad listed at 420 g "dry" weighs about 620 g with a 6S 1300 mAh pack (~200 g), and well over 700 g with a full-size action camera on top.
| Term | What it includes |
|---|---|
| Dry weight | Frame, motors, electronics, props - no battery. What most spec sheets print. |
| Takeoff weight / AUW | Dry weight + battery + HD camera, mounts, GPS, strap. What actually flies. |
Add yours up with the AUW builder, which also tells you whether the build lands under 250 g.
Why it dominates flight time
Hover power scales roughly with weight to the power 1.5. Add 10% AUW and you need ~15% more power to hover — while carrying the same battery. This is why strapping a full-size action camera on a cinewhoop can cut flight time by a third, and why long-range pilots obsess over every gram.
It also compounds: a heavier quad needs a bigger battery, which is itself heavier. Efficient builds escape the spiral; overweight ones never do.
Typical AUW by class
| Class | Example | AUW (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| 65 mm tiny whoop | Meteor65 Pro | 30–35 g |
| 75 mm 1S whoop | Mobula7 1S | 35–45 g |
| 2S whoop / 2" | Mobula8, FlyLens 85 | 60–110 g |
| Sub-100 cinewhoop | Pavo Pico | ~99 g |
| Sub-250 cinewhoop / LR | Defender 25, Explorer LR4 | 245–250 g |
| 3–3.5" cinewhoop | Cinebot30, Cinelog35 V2 | 380–500 g |
| 5" freestyle | Nazgul5 V3 | 620–700 g |
| 7"+ long range | Chimera7 Pro V2 | 1,100–1,400 g |
All from our quad database — each spec page lists weight with and without battery where the manufacturer publishes it.
The 250-gram line
Below 250 g AUW, most jurisdictions (FAA in the US, EASA C0 class in the EU) drop registration and some operational requirements. That single number explains an entire product category — sub-250 long-range quads ship with exactly-sized batteries (the Defender 25's 550 mAh pack exists purely to hit 249 g). Know your local rules; the threshold is about takeoff weight, not dry weight.
Crash energy and agility
Kinetic energy grows linearly with mass (and with speed squared): a 700 g 5" hits an order of magnitude harder than a 35 g whoop. Lighter also means faster direction changes at the same thrust — the reason racers shave grams off already-light builds.
FAQ
What does AUW mean on a drone?
AUW stands for all-up weight: the weight of the drone as it takes off, with the battery, camera and every accessory on board. It is the number that decides flight time, thrust-to-weight ratio and which legal weight class the drone falls into.
Is AUW with or without the battery?
With the battery. Weight without the battery is called dry weight, and it is what most manufacturer spec sheets list, so a quad's AUW is always higher than the headline weight on its box.
How do I find my quad's AUW?
Weigh it ready to fly, with the battery and camera you actually use, on a kitchen scale. To plan a build before buying parts, add the component weights in the AUW builder.
What is a good AUW for a 5 inch FPV quad?
Most 5" freestyle quads fly at roughly 620-700 g with a 6S battery and no action camera. Race builds go lighter; a full-size GoPro adds about 150 g, a naked or "Lite" action camera far less.
Why do so many drones weigh 249 grams?
Because 250 g takeoff weight is where registration and some operating rules start in the US (FAA) and the EU (C0 class). Sub-250 quads are designed around that line, often down to the battery size. Check the rules where you fly.