Best 360 Cameras (2026): DJI, Insta360, GoPro

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What if you could capture everything around you all the time? That's the promise of the best 360 cameras, which use two lenses to simultaneously record everything in a scene, stitching it together in software. The big advantage of 360 cameras over traditional action cameras is that you don't miss anything. Remember that time you were carving the fresh powder with a GoPro on your head and you missed the grizzly bear that lunged at you from the side? You would have had the shot if you'd been using a 360 camera.

Unedited 360 footage can be used in a VR headset, but for most of us, 360 footage will end up edited down to a traditional “flat” video. This is the primary scenario we've considered in testing and selecting these cameras. Be sure to check out our other camera buying guides, including the Best Action Cameras, Best Drones, Best Compact Cameras, Best GoPro, Best Mirrorless Cameras, and Best Camera Bags.

Updated March 2026: After months of testing, we've replaced the Insta360 X4 with the Insta360 X4 Air and updated prices and links throughout.

Top 5 360 Cameras Compared

| GoPro Max 2 | Insta360 X5 | Insta360 X4 Air | DJI Osmo 360 | Ricoh Theta X | | |---|---|---|---|---|---| Price (sale) | $500 ($400) | $550 | $400 ($300) | $550 | $597 | Max Video Specs | 8K: (7680x3840) @ 30/25/24 fps4K (16:9) (3840x2160) @ 60/50/30/25/24 fps in single lens mode | 8K 30 fps 360, 4K 60 fps in single lens mode | 8K 30 fps 360, 4K 60 fps in single lens mode | 8K 50 fps / 4K 120 fps in single-lens mode | 5.7K 30 fps 360 / 4K 30 fps in single lens mode | Single Lens Mode | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Photo Resolution | 360: 29MP (7680x3840) Single-Lens: 12MP (4000x3000) (RAW) 12MP from 4K (4:3) Video | 72 MP (11,904 x 5,952), 18 MP (5,888 x 2,944). RAW (DNG) supported | 72 MP (11,904 x 5,952), 18 MP (5,888 x 2,944). RAW (DNG) supported | 30 MP (4:3, 6400 × 4800) / Panoramic Photo 120 MP (2:1, 15520 × 7760) | 60 MP, 11,008 x 5,504 | Battery Life | 55-60 minutes at 8K, more at lower resolutions. | 80 minutes at 8K, more at lower resolutions. | 88 minutes at 8K, more at lower resolutions. | About 85 minutes at 8K, more at lower resolutions | Around 25 minutes at 5.7K, more at lower resolutions. | Video Modes | 360: Video, POV, Selfie, LoopingSingle-Lens: Video | Normal, PureVideo (Low light video) | — | Normal, SuperNight (low light) | — | Lens Guard | Included | Sold separately | Sold separately | Included | — |

Honorable Mentions

Insta360 X4 for $340: I'd recommend skipping this one unless you can get it on sale for under $300. The X4 Air is (usually) cheaper, smaller, and more capable, though the X4 does have a larger screen and the battery life is better (though again, the video quality is not as good as the X4 Air). If you can find a killer deal under $300, the X4 is worth nabbing. Otherwise though, stick with the X4 Air.

Qoocam 3 Ultra for $539: It's not widely available, and we have not had a chance to try one, but Kandao's Qoocam 3 Ultra is another 8K 360 camera that looks promising, at least on paper. The f/1.6 aperture is especially interesting, as most of the rest of these are in the f/2 and up range. We'll update this guide when we've had a chance to test a Qoocam.

360 Cameras to Avoid

Insta360 One RS: Insta360's interchangeable-lens action-camera/360-camera hybrid was a novel idea that just didn't seem to catch on. Now it's a bit dated. The video footage isn't as good as the other cameras in this guide, but you can swap the lens and have an action camera in a moment, which is the major selling point. Ultimately I'd say skip this, get the X4 Air and if you want to use it like a GoPro, just shoot in single lens mode.

GoPro Max: You'll still run across GoPro's original Max sometimes, but again, there are better options.

Insta360 One X3: Insta360’s older X3 is not worth buying at this point.

Insta360 One RS 1 360 Edition: Although I still like and use this camera, it appears to have been discontinued, and there's no replacement in sight. The X5 delivers better video quality in a lighter, less fragile body, but I will miss those 1-inch sensors that managed to pull a lot of detail, even if the footage did top out at 6K. These are still available used, but at outrageous prices. You're better off with the X5.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Buy a 360 Camera?

There are two reasons you'd want a 360-degree camera. The first is to shoot virtual reality content, where the final viewing is done on a 360 screen, e.g., VR headsets and the like. So far this is mostly the province of professionals who are shooting on very expensive 360 rigs not covered in this guide, though there is a growing body of amateur creators as well. If this is what you want to do, go for the highest-resolution camera you can get. Either of our top two picks will work.

For most of us though, the main appeal of a 360 camera is to shoot everything around you and then edit or reframe to the part of the scene we want to focus on, or panning and tracking objects within the 360 footage, but with the result being a typical, rectangular video that then gets exported to the web. The video resolution and image quality will never match what you get from a high-end DSLR, but the DSLR might not be pointed at the right place, at the right time. The 360 camera doesn't have to be pointed anywhere, it just has to be on.

This is the best use case for the cameras on this page, which primarily produce HD (1080p) or better video—but not 4K—when reframed. I expect to see 12K-capable consumer-level 360 cameras in the next year or two (which is what you need to reframe to 4K), but for now, these are the best cameras you can buy.

Whether you're shooting virtual tours or your kid's birthday, the basic premise of a 360 camera is the same. The fisheye lens (usually two very wide-angle lenses combined) captures the entire scene around you, ideally editing out the selfie stick if you're using one. Once you've captured your 360-degree view, you can then edit or reframe that content down to something ready to upload to YouTube, TikTok, and other video-sharing sites.

Why Is High Resolution Important in 360 Cameras?

Camera makers have been pushing ever-higher video resolution for so long it feel like a gimmick in many cases, but not with 360 cameras. Because the camera is capturing a huge field of view, the canvas if you will, is very large. To get a conventional video from that footage you have to crop which zooms in on the image, meaning your 8K 360 shot becomes just under 2.7K when you reframe that footage.

How Does “Reframing” Work?

Reframing is the process of taking the huge, 360-degree view of the world that your camera capture and zooming in on just a part of it to tell your story. This makes the 360 footage fit traditional movie formats (like 16:9), but as noted above it means cropping your footage, so the higher resolution you start with the better your reframed video will look.

If you're shooting for VR headsets or other immersive tools, then you don't have to reframe anything.

How We Tested

I've been shooting with 360 cameras since Insta360 released the X2 back in 2020. Early 360 cameras were fun, but the video they produced wasn't high enough resolution to fit with footage from other cameras, limiting their usefulness. Thankfully we've come a long way in the last five years. The 360 camera market has grown and the footage these cameras produce is good enough to mix seamless with your action camera and even your high end mirrorless camera footage.

To test 360 cameras I've broken the process down into different shooting scenarios, especially scenes with different lighting conditions, to see how each performs. No camera is perfect, so which one is right for you depends on what you're shooting. I've paid special attention to the ease of use of each camera (360 cameras can be confusing for beginners), along with what kind of helpful