Editorial Policy

1. Our Editorial Standards

Every drone review, side-by-side comparison, and ranking score published on Drone Ranker is researched, written, and edited by Alihan Demirdaş, the site's founder and editor (see the Editorial Team page). He uses software, including AI-based research tools, the way an analyst uses a spreadsheet: to organize specification tables, cross-check figures, and keep sources tidy. The wording you read, the scores, and the recommendations are his, and he is responsible for them.

Most reviews, guides, and comparisons are documentary analyses built from official specifications, certification filings, and regulatory records. When we have an aircraft in hand, the page says so, names the editor, describes the conditions, and carries our own photographs and flight notes; pages without that label make no claim of flight testing. Our source and scoring framework is documented in our Methodology page.

2. Independence from Manufacturers

Editorial independence is non-negotiable. Concretely:

• No implied hands-on access. We do not describe a specification-based analysis as a physical test or suggest that a product was purchased, flown, or handled when it was not.
• No paid placements. A manufacturer's affiliate commission rate, advertising spend, or partnership status has zero influence on the score a product receives or the order in which it appears in a ranking.
• No manufacturer sign-off. Manufacturers, retailers, and affiliate partners do not approve our verdicts before publication.
• No ghost-writing. Manufacturers, PR agencies, and retailers never write, edit, or approve our editorial content. Sponsored content, when published, is clearly labeled and excluded from rankings.

For details on the financial relationships that do exist, see our Affiliate Disclosure.

3. Sourcing and Fact-Checking

Every quantitative claim in our drone reviews — sensor size, weight, top speed, wind resistance level, video bitrate, battery capacity, ISO range, transmission range — is traced back to one of the following primary sources:

• The manufacturer's official product page and spec sheet (DJI.com, AutelRobotics.com, Skydio.com, etc.).
• Firmware release notes and product manuals published by the manufacturer.
• Regulatory filings such as FCC ID reports, EU Type Examination Certificates, and EASA class identification labels.
• Clearly attributed community observations when they add context that official specifications cannot provide.

When a claim is editorial interpretation (for example: "best drone for real estate photography under 900g"), we make the reasoning explicit and reference the underlying data points.

4. Corrections and Updates

We treat corrections as a feature, not a failure. When a factual error is identified in a published review, comparison, or news article, we:

• Correct the page as soon as the error is verified.
• Append a dated correction note at the bottom of the article explaining what was changed and why.
• Re-check the affected metric against current primary documentation and republish the corrected data.
• Re-run the comparison scoring if the correction affects any of the four ranking axes (camera, flight, build, value).

To report a suspected inaccuracy, please use our Contact page and select "Correction to Ranking Data" as the subject. Include the URL of the page, the claim in question, and a source you believe supersedes ours.

5. Conflicts of Interest

Members of the Drone Ranker editorial team are not permitted to hold paid positions, consulting contracts, or equity in any consumer or commercial drone manufacturer (DJI, Autel, Skydio, Parrot, Yuneec, Freefly, Auterion, etc.) or in any major drone retailer. Personal hobby ownership of drones is allowed but is disclosed to the editor-in-chief when a relevant review is being assigned.

6. Research Tools and Hands-On Testing

Software tools, including AI-based ones, assist the editor with structured tasks such as normalizing specification sheets, organizing research, and cross-checking figures. Their output is never treated as a source and never replaces the editor's own writing. Before publication, the editor verifies product names, quantitative claims, cited sources, winner logic, limitations, and the final recommendation against the primary documents.

Hands-on evaluations follow the same rules with one addition: the page identifies who flew the aircraft, under what conditions, and whether the unit was purchased, borrowed, or supplied for evaluation by a manufacturer, distributor, or retailer. Evaluation units are disclosed on the page and returned when requested, and they never influence a score or a verdict. Companies that would like a product evaluated this way can reach the editor through the contact page.

7. Use of Our Content

Excerpts (up to 150 words) may be republished with attribution and a dofollow link to the original page. Full republication of our comparison data, ranking scores, or editorial methodology requires written permission. See our Terms of Use for the full policy.

8. Contact the Editorial Team

Story tips, corrections, press releases, and partnership inquiries should go through the Contact page. For background on our testing approach, see the Methodology page. To understand how we earn revenue, see the Affiliate Disclosure.