Drone Agricultural Survey Services

What Is a Drone Agricultural Survey?

A drone agricultural survey uses unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with specialist sensors to capture detailed data about your farmland, crops, and agricultural assets. Unlike traditional field walking or satellite imagery, our drones fly at low altitude to deliver centimetre-level precision across your entire holding.

At Drone Survey Services, we deploy advanced multispectral and RGB sensors to create comprehensive farm maps, identify crop stress before it becomes visible, analyse drainage patterns, and generate accurate boundary surveys. This data empowers you to make informed decisions that directly improve yields and reduce input costs.

James Leslie

Owner, Engineer & Drone Pilot

"Got questions? Call me directly - I'm happy to talk through your project."

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Precision Farm Data,Delivered Fast

What You'll Receive

• High-resolution farm orthomosaic
• NDVI crop health maps
• Drainage pattern analysis
• Accurate boundary mapping

Delivered in 5-7 working days

Why Choose Us

• CAA approved & fully insured
• Agricultural survey specialists
• Latest multispectral technology
• UK-wide coverage

Trusted by farmers, agronomists & land agents across the UK.

Available now — typically respond within 10 mins

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How Much Does a Drone Agricultural Survey Cost?

Pricing depends on your farm size and required outputs. Here's a guide to help you budget:

*Guide prices include standard deliverables. Final quote based on farm complexity, access, and specific requirements.

What affects your quote?

• Farm size & terrain
• Required deliverables
• Turnaround time
• Number of visits

Our drone agricultural surveys typically cost 50-70% less than traditional ground-based surveying methods while delivering more comprehensive data. Contact us with your farm details and we'll provide a tailored quote within 24 hours.

What Is the Difference Between Drone Agricultural Survey and Traditional Methods?

Traditional farm surveying relies on manual field walking, sample-based assessments, and occasional satellite imagery. While these methods have served farmers for decades, they're time-consuming, limited in coverage, and often miss emerging problems until they're visible to the naked eye.

Drone agricultural surveys capture complete coverage of your entire holding in a single flight session. Our sensors detect crop stress, nutrient deficiencies, and pest damage days or weeks before symptoms become visible—giving you crucial time to intervene and protect your yield.

What Accuracy Can a Drone Agricultural Survey Achieve?

Our drone agricultural surveys achieve ground sample distances (GSD) as fine as 1-2cm per pixel—that's detailed enough to count individual plants or identify small weed patches. For mapping and boundary work, we deliver positional accuracy of ±2-5cm using RTK/PPK GPS technology and ground control points.

This level of precision far exceeds satellite imagery (typically 30cm-10m resolution) and enables variable rate application maps that your sprayer or spreader can use directly. Our NDVI crop health maps can detect stress in individual zones as small as a few square metres, allowing truly targeted interventions.

What Are the Applications of Drone Agricultural Survey?

Drone agricultural surveys support precision farming across all sectors of UK agriculture. Here are the key applications where our clients see the greatest return on investment:

Can Drones Assess Crop Health?

Yes—this is one of the most powerful applications of drone agricultural surveys. Our multispectral sensors capture light beyond the visible spectrum to calculate the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). This scientifically-proven measure reveals plant vigour and chlorophyll content that's invisible to the human eye.

Healthy, actively-growing crops reflect more near-infrared light and less red light. By measuring this ratio across your entire farm, we create detailed maps showing exactly where crops are thriving and where they're struggling. You'll see the results as colour-coded maps—green zones indicate healthy growth, while red and yellow areas highlight stress that needs investigation.

What Deliverables Do You Get From a Drone Agricultural Survey?

We tailor deliverables to your farm requirements, but our standard agricultural survey outputs include:

• Farm Orthomosaic Map

  High-resolution, georeferenced aerial imagery of your entire holding. Perfect for planning, record-keeping, and as a base layer for farm management systems.

• NDVI Crop Health Maps

  Colour-coded vegetation index maps showing crop vigour across every field. Identify problem areas and track changes through the growing season.

• Drainage Analysis

  Digital terrain models and surface water flow analysis to identify drainage issues, ponding areas, and optimal locations for new drains.

• Boundary Mapping & CAD Files

  Accurate field boundaries in DXF/DWG format for farm software, BPS claims, and professional record-keeping.

• Crop Assessment Reports

  Written analysis with recommendations highlighting areas requiring attention and suggested actions to optimise your operation.

How Long Does a Drone Agricultural Survey Take?

On-site data capture is remarkably fast. We can survey 100-200 hectares per day depending on the required resolution and weather conditions. A typical 50-hectare mixed farm takes just 2-3 hours of flight time, plus setup and ground control establishment.

Processing and delivery depends on your required outputs. Standard deliverables are typically ready within 5-7 working days. For time-critical decisions during the growing season, we offer expedited 48-72 hour turnaround at additional cost. We'll confirm realistic timescales when we quote your project.

How Do I Choose a Drone Agricultural Survey Provider?

Not all drone survey services understand farming. When evaluating providers, we recommend checking these key factors:

• CAA authorisation – Ensure they hold valid GVC or legacy PfCO permissions for commercial operations
• Agricultural experience – Ask about their understanding of farming systems and crop production
• Multispectral capability – RGB cameras alone can't deliver NDVI crop health mapping
• Actionable outputs – Data should work with your sprayer, spreader, and farm software
• Farm references – Request examples of agricultural projects they've completed

At Drone Survey Services, we tick every box. We're CAA approved, fully insured, and have delivered agricultural surveys for arable farms, dairy operations, mixed holdings, and estate clients throughout the UK.

Is Drone Agricultural Survey Cheaper Than Traditional Methods?

In most scenarios, yes—and you get far more data for your investment. Traditional crop walking and manual sampling can only ever cover a fraction of your fields. Satellite imagery subscriptions cost hundreds of pounds per month and deliver far lower resolution than drone surveys.

Our drone agricultural surveys capture complete coverage of your entire holding in a single visit. The return on investment comes from targeted interventions—applying inputs only where needed rather than blanket treating whole fields. Most clients see payback within the first season through reduced input costs and protected yields.