acroFPV
FPV basics
What is acro mode in FPV?
Acro mode, often called rate mode, is the control mode behind FPV freestyle. The short version: your sticks command rotation rate, not a self-leveling angle.
Acro mode vs angle mode
In angle mode, the quad tries to return to level when you release the stick. That can be helpful for basic orientation, but it also fights the kind of movement FPV freestyle pilots want.
In acro mode, the quad keeps its attitude until you command a change. Push roll and the quad rolls. Release roll and it stops rolling, but it does not automatically level itself. This is why acro mode feels strange at first and powerful later.
Rate mode, acro mode, and manual mode
In FPV conversations, these words often point at the same core idea: the pilot is commanding angular rotation instead of a self-leveling angle. Betaflight documentation calls the default non-auto-leveling behavior Rate mode and notes that pilots also call it Acro or Manual mode.
That matters for search and learning because a DJI pilot may say manual mode, a Betaflight pilot may say rate mode, and a freestyle pilot may say acro mode. For practice, the question is the same: can you control attitude, speed, and recovery without the quad leveling itself for you?
What each stick is doing
- Throttle
- Controls lift. It does not auto-hold altitude, so every trick is also a throttle-control lesson.
- Roll
- Rotates the quad left or right around the forward axis.
- Pitch
- Tilts the camera view down or up and drives much of your forward motion.
- Yaw
- Rotates the nose left or right, often blended with roll for coordinated turns.
Beginner acro mode goals
- Hold altitude while making tiny pitch and roll corrections.
- Make a slow turn without panic-yawing or over-rolling.
- Recover to level flight after a trick setup.
- Fly toward a gap, decide early, and exit with space.
- Use throttle before you need it, not after the quad is falling.
Try this in acroFPV
Open the sim, choose a small map, and fly one lap with no tricks. Keep the horizon calm, make every turn with both roll and yaw, and save a clip only if the exit is clean. That first boring lap is the foundation for every bigger trick.