The Best UAV Photogrammetry Software in 2022

Photogrammetry is a useful method of capturing and processing aerial images into visually meaningful data. It is used in several industries such as agriculture, real estate, and mining. Drones (UAVs) make photogrammetry cost-effective and fast. Therefore, here are some of the best UAV photogrammetry software that will help you create accurate orthographic maps and 3D models in no time.

What is Photogrammetry?

Photogrammetry is the process of gathering useful information about objects and topography through images. Drone photogrammetry uses drones to gather aerial data. That data is then fed into an image processing software to create highly detailed 2D maps & 3D models. Drones capture the x, y, and z coordinates of every pixel in an image. Those coordinates are then used to create point clouds (which can then be condensed to form realistic 3D models).

Photogrammetry in agriculture is used to create plant health models, find slope and elevation, and predict yield. Similarly, it has plenty of applications in the mining industry to make volumetric assessments and stockpile management. The 2D maps or orthographic maps are useful for urban planning. Urban planners use the orthographic maps generated by photogrammetry software to plan roads, public infrastructure, various pipelines, and even practice disaster management.

RELATED: Best Drones for Photogrammetry

Note: Most photogrammetry software requires a workstation or a high specification desktop for smooth operation. Therefore, hardware costs must be kept in mind in addition to the licensing costs. All prices mentioned below are only licensing costs.

Best UAV Photogrammetry Software

1. PIX4D

PIX4D is the leading photogrammetry software for drone mapping. Pix4D offers a range of different mapping products such as the PIX4Dmapper, PIX4Dcloud, PIX4Dinspect, etc. The mapping software allows users to create several types of datasets. Its volumetric analysis and accurate measurement tools enable you to create extremely accurate models. The software has the most comprehensive list of features.

PIX4D also supports processing multispectral images. Therefore, you can use a number of indices to create NDVI and thermal maps. Additionally, PIX4D allows you to work on your models via cloud and promotes team integration. Cloud support means that you can run the software on PIX4D’s cloud servers and cut down on hardware costs.

Pricing

PIX4Dmapper: The PIX4Dmapper has a 15-day trial, one-time cost, or monthly license. One-time license: $4,990 (unlimited desktop processing)

Monthly subscription: $291.67/month

PIX4Dcloud: PIX4Dcloud offers three pricing options – standard, advanced, and enterprise.

Standard Plan: $165.83/month (2,500 images or 20 projects/month)

Advanced Plan: $290.83/month (standard features plus AutoGCPs, CAD-overlay, etc.)

Datasets Covered

PIX4D supports the creation of the following datasets:

• 3D Point Cloud & Textured Models
• DSM & DTM
• 2D & 3D Volumetric Analysis
• Orthomosaics
• Contouring
• Thermography
• Plant Health Maps

Learn more about PIX4D’s drone mapping products.

2. DroneDeploy

DroneDeploy is end-to-end flight management and data processing software. Operators can create flight plans, conduct real-time drone mapping, detailed analysis, and create various datasets (orthomosaics, point clouds, 3D textured models, etc.). DroneDeploy is one of the most secure and efficient drone photogrammetry solutions. It has a competitive and value-packed pricing model.

DroneDeploy is an intuitive and user-friendly solution. Compared to PIX4D’s steep and complex learning curve, DroneDeploy is great for beginners. The company also provides a DroneDeploy app to create flight plans and access real-time NDVI and orthomosaic data. Another useful functionality of DroneDeploy is its compatibility with a number of DJI drones.

DroneDeploy enables you to create high-quality and survey-grade datasets. You can create all the standard datasets (orthomosaics, point clouds, elevation models, thermal maps, etc.). Its compatibility with the FLIR camera systems helps operators generate radiometric thermal maps. 

Pricing

DroneDeploy offers a 14-day free trial. It has three primary pricing plans – lite, individual, teams/enterprise. Also, it is a web-based cloud application.

Lite: $99/month (1,000 images per map, live map support, 2D map measurements, elevation models)

Individual: $299/month (3,000 images per map, Lite features plus GCP support, plant health models, 2D & 3D measurements, inspection workflows, overlays, etc.)

Team/Enterprise: This pricing model is variable and requires a quotation. It offers greater customization, a larger image per map limit, more users, and premium features.

Datasets Covered

DroneDeploy supports the creation of the following datasets:

• 3D Point Cloud & Textured Models
• DSM & DTM
• 2D & 3D Volumetric Analysis
• Orthomosaics
• Contouring
• Thermography
• Plant Health Maps
• Automated Flight Plans

Learn more about DroneDeploy.

3. Agisoft Metashape

Agisoft Metashape is a popular 3D modeling and photogrammetry software. It is not only used for drone photogrammetry but also in game development, cultural heritage documentation, and visual effects production. It may not be the most feature-rich photogrammetry solution but it’s cost-effective. You can create survey-grade orthographic maps and highly detailed textured 3D models. Agisoft creates one of the best textured 3D models on this list.

Agisoft offers standard dataset creation such as orthomosaics, elevation models, highly-detailed point clouds, GCPs, multispectral imager, etc. In addition to these, the software provides you features that aren’t available on commercial photogrammetry software. These features include stereoscopic vectorization, TLS registration, Python, and Java scripting. The only downside of Agisoft is that you cannot carry out sophisticated measurements on the datasets. It does allow for basic measurements and volumetric analysis but for more complex calculations, third-party software is required.

Pricing

Agisoft offers a 30-day free trial of its desktop application. It offers a standard and a professional plan. However, the standard plan does not include photogrammetry tools. Therefore, only the professional plan is mentioned below.

Professional Edition One-Time Payment: $3,499 Node-locked license (This includes free lifetime upgrades, unlimited desktop processing, free cloud processing, and access to all premium features)

For floating (multi-user), enterprise, or educational licenses, you can reach out to Agisoft.

Datasets Covered

Agisoft Metashape supports the creation of the following datasets:

• Photogrammetric triangulation
• Textured 3D models & Point clouds
• Orthographic maps
• Elevation models
• Terrestrial Laser Scanning (TLS) Registration
• Hierarchical tiled model
• Multispectral maps
• Stereoscopic and Volumetric measurements

Learn more about Agisoft Metashape.

4. WebODM

Photogrammetry software licenses can quickly add up costs. You should try out WebODM if you’re looking for the best free and open-source photogrammetry software. The amount of customization provided in WebODM is unlike any other software. It has no processing limits and you can rebrand the software entirely to your liking.

There are several advanced features in WebODM that make it a worthy competitor. You can create all the standard datasets with high accuracy. WebODM’s results are comparable if not superior to PIX4D and DroneDeploy. Check out the result comparison of WebODM and PIX4D. The in-built GCP support, comprehensive 2D & 3D measurements, and API integration make WebODM the perfect tool for free professional photogrammetry.

WebODM offers a simple interface that makes it extremely easy to use. Professionals, on the other hand, can take advantage of its customization options. Using parallel processing, you can run multiple projects at once, thereby decreasing the overall time. Even if you take hardware costs into consideration, WebODM still comes out as the most cost-effective solution on this list. Take a look at this detailed cost comparison of WebODM vs PIX4D vs Agisoft vs DroneDeploy.

Pricing

Considering you have the hardware specifications to run WebODM, the software can be downloaded for free from ODM’s Github repository. If you wish to run the software on a cloud server, you will only have to pay for the server hosting (which costs less than $100).

Note: Hosting WebODM on the cloud will require technical skills and some backend knowledge of node creation.

Datasets Covered

WebODM supports the creation of the following datasets:

• 3D Point Cloud & Textured Models
• DSM & DTM
• 2D & 3D Volumetric Analysis
• Orthomosaics
• Contouring
• Plant Health Maps
• Multispectral Imaging
• API Integration

Learn more about WebODM.

Conclusion

Photogrammetry is a vast domain with new technologies added every year. As drones become more sophisticated and cheaper, access to photogrammetry has also increased. Drones can now be equipped with Lidar sensors for more accurate results. The software mentioned in this list covers all budgets and feature requirements. Therefore, you can pick a software based on the complexity of your photogrammetry requirements.