🏆 The Best (and Worst) Canon EOS 90D Alternatives in 2023

If you just want a quick answer here are the top alternative Canon cameras for the Canon EOS 90D:

Ok so I’m going to start by saying that the Canon EOS 90D is probably one of, if not the best crop sensor DSLR on the market. So it’s hard to beat at this price point.

But there are some things that can be a deal breaker for some people when it comes to the 90D so you might want a replacement for it.

Or it could just be that you want a similar camera to replace the Canon 90D but for a slightly lower price point.

There are only a few cameras that are good alternatives to the Canon EOS 90D but it’ really depends on your situation and what you’re looking for.’s easy to make a mistake. 

In this post, I’ll guide you through the best (and worst) alternatives to the Canon EOS 90D. 

From budget picks to slightly more premium picks, and from wildlife photography to cinematic videography, you’ll find the perfect alternative to the Canon EOS 90D here.

I’ve carefully researched and spent countless hours to see what cameras are worth considering as alternatives based on price and features. (I’m pretty sure this is the most detailed review comparing the 90D with its closest alternative Canon cameras)

The 8 Canon cameras being compared to the Canon EOS 90D in this post are:

• Canon EOS 80D (avoid, pick R50 instead)
• Canon EOS 6D Mark II (avoid, pick R10 instead)
• Canon EOS R50 🏅 Best budget pick
• Canon EOS R10 🏅 Best alternative overall
• Canon EOS R7🏅Best premium pick
• Canon EOS M6 Mark II (avoid, pick R10 instead)
• Canon EOS RP (avoid, pick R7 instead)
• Canon EOS R8 (avoid, pick R7 instead)

Canon EOS R10

Here are the categories that the Canon EOS R10 is the top pick for:

• Best alternative overall
• Closest mirrorless equivalent to Canon 90D
• Wildlife or sports photography *(if you can’t afford the Canon EOS R7)

I’ve chosen the Canon EOS R10 as the best alternative overall because it’s better than the 90D in a lot of areas and it only loses out in some areas.

Here are the areas where the Canon 90D is better than the EOS R10:

• Battery life (1300 shots on 90D , 350 shots on R10)
• Has a 3.5mm headphone jack
• Megapixels (32.5MP on 90D, 24.2MP on R10
• Weather sealing (none on R10)

Here are the areas where the Canon EOS R10 is better than the Canon EOS 90D:

• Continuous shooting speed (15fps vs 11fps using mechanical shutter)
• Ability to use silent electronic shutter if needed up to 23fps
• Can record up to 4K (cropped) at 60fps
• More portable (R10 = 429g, 90D = 701g
• Newer processor (Digix X on R10 is newer than the Digic 8 on 90D)
• Longer recording limit (2 hours on R10, 30 minutes on 90D)
• 606 more AF points (better autofocus system)
• R10 is roughly 18% cheaper than the 90D

For the rest of the specs, the 90D and the R10 are pretty on par. This is why I’ve put the Canon EOS R10 down as the closest mirrorless equivalent to the Canon EOS 90D.

Given the price difference, I think the Canon EOS R10 is going to be your best alternative to the Canon EOS R10 if you want most of the features of the 90D (plus a few improvements), while still saving a couple hundred dollars.

I’ve put it down as one of the options for wildlife photography because it has a higher continuous shooting speed of 15fps (36% faster) and 606 more AF points so you’re more likely to get that autofocus firing faster on a fast-moving subject.

The increase auto AF points make it better at tracking moving subjects which is perfect for nature photography and birds in flight.

The reason it’s not the only choice for wildlife photography is that it doesn’t have weather sealing like the Canon EOS R7 does.

It’s not a deal breaker for everyone but it is for some.

It wouldn’t be a deal breaker for me if I can plan my outings accordingly and just avoid getting it out in the rain.

But if you’d like that extra reassurance of weather sealing, theres no doubt that the Canon EOS R7 will be the best wildlife photography camera on this list.

Canon EOS R50

The Canon EOS R50 only wins the top spot for one category in this list. And that’s for being the best budget alternative to the Canon 90D.

It’s got most of what the Canon 90D has but for about 43% less than the 90D. That’s a crazy saving! 🤯

Here’s where the 90D is better than the EOS R50:

• Battery Life
• Megapixels
• Weather sealing

Here’s where the Canon EOS R50 is better than the Canon EOS 90D

• Continuous shooting speed (12fps vs 11fps on the 90D)
• Being more portable (375g vs 701g)
• Ability to use silent shutter if needed
• Newer processor
• Longer recording limit of 1 hour
• 606 more AF points (better autofocus system)
• R50 is roughly 43% cheaper than the 90D

Apart from these differences the EOS R50 and 90D are pretty similar but you can see there are actually quite a few areas where the Canon EOS R50 trumps the Canon 90D

This is why I recommend the Canon EOS R50 as the best budget alternative to the Canon EOS 90D.

*If you have a slightly higher budget I would probably recommend the Canon EOS R10 for most people since there are some improvements. But to be honest for some people the R50 is still better than the R10.

See my detailed comparison of the Canon R50 vs Canon R10 for more information on this.

Canon EOS R7

The Canon EOS R7 is one of the best cameras mentioned in this post and it wins the categories of:

• Best for wildlife photography
• Best premium pick

Overall the Canon EOS R7 is better than the 90D in basically every way except battery life and affordability.

Here’s where the Canon EOS 90D is better than the Canon EOS R7:

• Battery life (1300 shots vs 770 on the R7)
• R7 is about 16% more costly than the 90D

Here’s where the Canon EOS R7 is better than the 90D:

• More portable (612g vs 701g on 90D)
• 606 more auto AF points than 90D
• Can do 4K at 60fps
• Has a 6-hour recording limit
• Continuous shooting speed of 15fps vs 11fps on 90D
• Ability to use electronic (silent) shutter up to 30fps
• Has In body image stabilization (IBIS)

In other areas like image quality, it’s pretty much the same as the 90D.

Given all the improvements made on the 90D though, if you can spend just a little bit more then the R7 is a fantastic pickup that’s basically better in every way compared to the 90D.

• Canon EOS R7

The reason I didn’t put the R8 as the premium pick is because, well it doesn’t really offer that much more than the R7 apart from higher frame rate video at 180fps and a full frame sensor, but it is more expensive.

• R7 is only about 16% more costly than the 90D
• R8 is about 25% more costly than the 90D

Things to consider when picking an alternative

So you’ve heard what I think are the best alternatives but we can dive deeper and make sure you pickt he best camera for YOU.

To do this you need to consider different features and specs and see how they relate to how you’re going to be using the camera. Let’s go through the most important ones.

Lenses You Already Have

If you already have a few lenses from Canon already then it’s less hassle to change them around.

If you have any EF-S lenses they won’t work on the Canon 6D Mark II because it is a full frame camera, but any EF lenses will work on the 6D Mark II.

On the other hand, EF and EF-S lenses can both be mounted on the Canon EOS R10, EOS R7, or EOS R50 if you use the right adapter.

You would need an EF-EOS R lens mount adapter (sometimes called an EF-RF adapter).

Features you ACTUALLY need vs what’s irrelevant

Remember to consider the features that are deal breakers for you and what are not.

If you’ll never be recording video, then the recording limit or 4K capabilities are irrelevant.

If you’ll be using video but using manual focus (a lot of people prefer to use manual focus for video) then autofocus points are kind of irrelevant.

If you won’t be doing much wildlife or sports photography then continuous shooting speed is less relevant to you too.

As well as considering the things that are completely irrelevant, you also should consider what’s really important to you.

Here’s some things to consider:

• Recording limit
• Continuous shooting speed
• Auto AF points
• Battery Life
• Weight
• Fully articulated screen
• Weather sealing
• Video capabilities e.g. Does it do 4K or high frame rates?
• MOST IMPORTANTLY…PRICE 💰

If you will be recording long videos, then the recording limit is important.

If you will be doing sports or wildlife photography then the continuous shooting speed is one of the most important specs to consider.

Lot’s of outdoor shooting will also mean you’re more likely to want weather sealing.

If you have really long shooting days because you do events or weddings then battery life does become something to consider more too.

Also consider if you’ll be using the camera for vlogging, in this case having a fully articulated screen is pretty important so you can see what you’re recording.

Now the most important and limiting factor is price.

If you have a set budget then it’s irrelevant looking at the best specs if you just can’t afford it.

Even if you can afford it, sometimes you’ll get more bang for your buck with a more affordable setup and you can spend the leftover money on other accessories and lenses.

Let’s go through each of these important features and see how these cameras stack up against the Canon EOS 90D.

Recording limits

If you’re going to be shooting long events longer than 30 minutes then you’ll need to be aware that the 90D will stop recording at 30 minutes.

In this case, you’ll want to look at one of the Canon R Series cameras instead, or just put up with the fact that you’d have to restart recording every 30 minutes on the Canon EOS 90D

Camera	Recording limits ⏳
Canon EOS R7 🏆	6 hours
Canon EOS R8 🥈	2 hours
Canon EOS R10 🥈	2 hours
Canon EOS R50 🥉	1 hour
Canon EOS 6D Mark II	30 minutes
Canon EOS 90D	30 minutes
Canon EOS 80D	30 minutes
Canon EOS RP	30 minutes
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	30 minutes

Continuous shooting speed

For avid bird watchers and sports photographers, continuous shooting speed and burst mode is really important.

If you really want to get that perfect wildlife photograph then the higher the continuous shooting speed the better your chances are.

Catching a bird in flight is a split-second moment and the additional frames per second can be the difference between a stellar award-winning photo and a dud.

But you can easily make a mistake here.

If you just look at the spec sheets you might see the high FPS available on electronic shutters from mirrorless cameras, but they’re kind of useless for what you’d use it for.

If you’re trying to use a fast shutter speed it’s because you’re trying to capture a fast-moving object.

But when you do this with most electronic shutters you will get a rolling shutter effect because the read-out of the sensor is much slower than on a mechanical shutter.

Basically, you end up getting warped lines in your images.

If you do use the mechanical shutter on your mirrorless camera though you can largely avoid this.

The Canon EOS 90D is ok for this at 11 fps.

In fact, as far as Canon DSLRs go at this price range it’s one of the better ones.

But its mirrorless brothers and sisters are a step above when it comes to burst mode as even the mechanical shutter is higher.

Here’s a table comparing the max continuous shooting speed in frames per second for the cameras mentioned in this post.

Camera	Mechanical Shutter 🛠	EFCS ⚡️
Canon EOS R7 🏆	15 fps	15 fps
Canon EOS R10 🏆	15 fps	15 fps
Canon EOS R50 🤔	N/A **	12 fps
Canon EOS 90D 🥉	11 fps	N/A
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	8 fps	N/A
Canon EOS 80D	7 fps	N/A
Canon EOS 6D Mark II	6.5 fps	N/A
Canon EOS R8 💀	N/A **	6 fps
Canon EOS RP	N/A **	5 fps

** The Canon EOS R8, RP and R50 do not have a mechanical shutter at all and the closest thing is their electronic first curtain shutter which I have included the FPS for.

As you can see from the table that the EOS R10 and EOS R7 have faster maximum continuous shooting speeds compared to the 90D with a mechanical shutter.

The EOS R10 stands out here because it’s actually more affordable than the Canon EOS 90D.

And the R50 has a faster shutter speed using an EFCS.

This can work as a decent middle ground but overall I’d say that if you had to choose between the two a mechanical shutter is better than an EFCS.

As much as I’ve kind of bad-mouthed electronic shutters, they can actually be pretty decent for slow-moving subjects particularly if you want to be quiet with your camera since they are silent. (This can be a benefit if you are close to wildlife that can get spooked easily).

Auto AF points

This category is pretty simple.

The more auto AF points the camera has to choose from, the easier it is for the camera to track and keep focus on a moving subject.

It can also help in focusing slightly faster.

It doesn’t mean more will be in focus but it just gives the camera a bit more flexibility in choosing AF points.

By having more auto AF points it can make your life easier if you’re trying to take pictures on the fly and you don’t enjoy messing about with manual focus.

To put it in simple terms, if your dog is running around the and you’re trying to take a picture of it then it’ll be easier to get focus if you have more auto AF points on your camera.

But I need to make it clear that the 45 AF points on the EOS 90D are already decent and are plenty for most people.

And let’s be honest going from 1053 to 4779 AF points isn’t really going to make a noticeable difference to you.

Although you will see a noticeable improvement from the 45 auto AF points to 651 AF points, particularly for moving subjects.

Here’s a quick table summarising the number of Auto AF points for each alternative to the Canon 90D.

Camera	Auto AF points 🎯
Canon EOS RP 🏆	4779
Canon EOS R8 🥈	1053
Canon EOS R7 🥉	651
Canon EOS R10 🥉	651
Canon EOS R50 🥉	651
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	143
Canon EOS 90D	45
Canon EOS 80D	45
Canon EOS 6D MARK II	45

Battery Life

The Canon EOS 90D has really good battery life (rated to 1300 shots) so it’s pretty hard to beat.

But battery life is one of those things that can be solved by just buying some spare batteries or using a constant power source like a dummy battery kit.

Here’s a quick table comparing the battery life for the cameras on this list of alternatives.

Camera	Battery Life (CIPA rating) 🔋
Canon EOS 80D 🏆	1390 shots
Canon EOS 90D 🥈	450* / 1300 shots ↔️
Canon EOS 6D Mark II 🥉	1200 shots
Canon EOS R7	770 shots
Canon EOS R50	370 shots
Canon EOS R10	350 shots
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	305 shots
Canon EOS R8	290 shots
Canon EOS RP 💀	250 shots

As you can see the Canon EOS 80D is the only camera on this list that beats the Canon EOS 90D in battery life and the 6D Mark II is the only other that comes close.

In terms of mirrorless cameras the battery life is a lot lower but that’s expected as they always have the Electronic viewfinder consuming power, it’s like having a screen on all the time.

In fact, if you only used the Canon EOS 90D in live view mode (using the screen instead of the optical view finder) then the CIPA rating drops down to only 450 shots for the Canon EOS 90D.

You can see that the Canon EOS R7 actually performs pretty well here with a CIPA rating of 770 shots.

If swapping batteries out isn’t too much of a pain for you then this category doesn’t really matter too much as you can just get enough spare batteries that you don’t have to worry about running out of power.

I personally don’t worry too much about battery life but I try to stick to 350 shots or above when it comes to the CIPA rating.

Weight and Build

This is down to personal preference depending on the person.

DSLRs are chunkier, tactile and heavy. For some people, this is a benefit and for others, it’s a negative.

On the other hand, mirrorless cameras are smaller, lightweight and less tactile.

Again, some people like this and some people don’t.

I personally like the feeling of the Canon EOS R7 which is around 612g, but my girlfriend loves the R50 at 375g because she likes how easy it is to take around with her and the beginner-friendly feel to it.

I generally like the feel of cameras that are between about 400g and 800g.

Here’s a quick table comparing the weights of the cameras mentioned in this post against the Canon EOS 90D.

Camera	Weight 🏋🏻‍♂️
Canon EOS 6D Mark II 🏋🏻‍♂️	765g
Canon EOS 80D	730g
Canon EOS 90D	701g
Canon EOS R7	612g
Canon EOS RP	485g
Canon EOS R8	461g
Canon EOS R10	429g
Canon M6 Mark II	408g
Canon EOS R50 🪶	375g

You can see that there’s not much between these cameras in terms of weight. But if you prefer a lightweight camera then the mirrorless ones will be more up your street.

The Canon EOS R10 which is one of the best value cameras on this list, fits nicely into the ‘lightweight’ range weighing in under 500g.

Fully articulated screen

If you are going to be doing any type of video work and in particular if you are going to be vlogging then a fully articulated screen is a must.

Basically, it means you can turn the screen completely around and make it easy to see yourself when the camera is pointed at you.

Luckily the 90D and all the other alternatives in this post have a fully articulated screen… except the Canon M6 Mark II ❌.

Weather Sealing

This one is tricky too since a lot of cameras have weather sealing but some have better than others.

Another thing to note is that weather sealing on the camera body doesn’t necessarily mean you’re completely safe from the elements, it just means that they are more resistant to water and dust from getting in.

And don’t forget the lenses.

If the camera is weather sealed but the lens is not, then you’re still at risk if it gets rainy.

Even with all this, having weather sealing is better than not having it.

Here’s a quick table showing the Canon 90D alternatives and whether they’re weather sealed or not:

Camera	Weather Sealing? ☔️
Canon EOS RP	Yes ✅
Canon EOS R8	Yes ✅
Canon EOS R7	Yes ✅
Canon EOS R10	No ❌
Canon EOS R50	No ❌
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	No ❌
Canon EOS 90D	Yes ✅
Canon EOS 80D	Yes ✅
Canon EOS 6D Mark II	Yes ✅

You can see from the table above that out of all the Canon 90D alternatives the following cameras are the only ones without some form of weather sealing.

• Canon EOS R50
• Canon EOS R10
• Canon EOS M6 Mark II

This doesn’t mean they won’t work outdoors, but it’s just a bit more risky if you’re going to be outdoors a lot in dusty or wet conditions.

If you think you’re going to be stuck in a rainforest for days or you live in a very rainy climate then you might want to choose another camera on the list.

If however you only shoot indoors in a studio then weather sealing is probably completely irrelevant to you.

💡 Personal note: Even if you do shoot outdoors you can manage without weather sealing.

From personal experience, my first camera was a Canon EOS Rebel SL2 (200D) and that doesn’t have weather sealing.

Back in 2018, I took it to Thailand, Hong Kong and Malaysia at the height of their rainy seasons when humidity was off the charts… It still works fine 5 years later in 2023.

Video Resolution and Frame Rates

If you’re going to be recording a lot of video then the max video resolution and frame rates are going to be very important to you.

You’ll also want to know if the camera offers high frame rates of 120fps or above for slow motion (although you can get away with slow motion using 60fps)

Here’s a quick table summarizing the max video resolutions and frame rates of the Canon 90D and its closest Canon alternatives.

Camera	Max Video Resolution 🎥	High Frame Rates 🏃🏻‍♂️
Canon EOS R8 🏆	4K at 60 FPS	1080p at 180 fps 🤯
Canon EOS R7 🏆	4K at 60 FPS	1080p at 120 fps
Canon EOS R10 🏆	4K at 60 FPS (cropped)	1080p at 120 fps
Canon EOS R50	4K at 30 FPS	1080p at 120 fps
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	4K at 30 FPS	1080p at 120 fps
Canon EOS 90D	4K at 30 FPS	1080p at 120 fps
Canon EOS RP	4K at 24/25 FPS	Nope
Canon EOS 80D	1080p at 60 FPS	Nope
Canon EOS 6D Mark II	1080p at 60 FPS	Nope

You can see from the table that the only alternatives to the Canon EOS 90D that don’t offer 4K video are the Canon EOS 80D and the Canon EOS 6D Mark II.

If recording 4K video is a must for you then you should avoid these two cameras.

In terms of getting 4K at 60fps, you can choose the Canon EOS R7, EOS R8 or the EOS R10 as an alternative to the Canon EOS 90D.

The R10 is the only one out of these three that is actually more affordable than the Canon 90D and this is what makes the Canon EOS R10 one of the best alternatives to the 90D for video.

But one thing to note is that the 4K at 60 FPS on the Canon EOS R10 is cropped in, but if you drop down to 30 FPS you get back to uncropped 4K on the R10.

When it comes to matching the 90D and its 4K at 30fps both the M6 Mark II and the Canon EOS R50 can offer the same.

Looking at slow-motion video capabilities you can see that the only cameras not to offer a 120fps setting are the Canon EOS RP, 80D and 6D Mark II. (I can let the 80D and 6D Mark II slide but the RP really should have 120fps for the price and time it was released)

While you can shoot slow motion at 60 fps, the 120 fps opens up more options for creativity for buttery-smooth slo-mo.

Price $$$

The thing that will really affect which camera you buy more than anything else.

Money.

Some of these cameras are slightly older so the prices have come down.

Some of these might only be found as used rather than new so keep that in mind because you won’t be getting warranties when using used equipment.

Here I’ve included a price ranking table for the Canon 90D and its closest Canon alternatives.

I’ve not included exact prices because these change all the time.

Camera	Price Rank 💰
Canon EOS R50 🏆	43% less than 90D 🤑
Canon EOS 80D 🥈	35% less than 90D ** USED 🤑
Canon EOS M6 Mark II 🥉	33% less than 90D ** USED 🤑
Canon EOS R10	18% less than 90D 🤑
Canon EOS RP	16% less than 90D 🤑
Canon EOS 6D Mark II	4% less than 90D 🤑
Canon EOS 90D	**This is the 90D** 😐
Canon EOS R7	16% more than 90D 😡
Canon EOS R8 💀	25% more than 90D 😡

I’ve also ranked this by the ‘sold as new’ price where possible, but for older cameras like the M6 Mark II and the 80D it is the used or renewed price seen on Amazon.

Also, keep in mind that the ranks could change too depending on how close the cameras are in price, but this table is accurate as of July 2023.

I’ve tried to put in a percentage difference in price based on current prices in the market.

You can see from the table that the Canon EOS R7 and the Canon EOS R8 are the only cameras more expensive than the Canon EOS 90D in this list of alternatives with the Canon EOS R8 being the most expensive alternative to make this list.

I think anything beyond the R8 wouldn’t really be seen as an alternative to the 90D because you start to get into a completely different price range.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, the top three in order of affordability are the R50, R10 and M6 Mark II.

I’d steer clear of the M6 Mark II and go for the R50 or R10 which are considerably better cameras.

Megapixels and Sensor

Megapixels have become less relevant for the average photographer over the years as pretty much every camera you use is going to be high enough resolution for you.

To give you a quick overview though, higher megapixels will give you more freedom with printing your work, post-processing and cropping into photos.

At the same time, higher megapixels will lead to larger files and slower processing times for the camera.

When it comes to sensors, if everything else is equal a full-frame sensor tends to do better than an APS-C (crop) sensor in low light conditions and also provides better dynamic range.

Here’s a quick table summarizing the megapixels and sensor types of the Canon 90D and its alternatives.

Camera	Megapixels (MP)	Sensor Type
Canon EOS 90D	32.5	APS-C
Canon EOS R7	32.5	APS-C
Canon EOS M6 Mark II	31.7	APS-C
Canon EOS RP	26.2	Full Frame
Canon EOS 6D Mark II	26.2	Full Frame
Canon EOS R50	25.5	APS-C
Canon EOS R8	24.2	Full Frame
Canon EOS R10	24.2	APS-C
Canon EOS 80D	24.2	APS-C

I’ve not included any type of ranking in this table because I don’t think that’s a fair way to assess the quality of the camera.

This is because you can have a lower megapixel sensor that performs better than a higher megapixel sensor and vice versa.

For example, a lot of phones nowadays have 48mp sensors. But that doesn’t mean they can replace DSLRs or mirrorless cameras.

Even though the megapixel count can be seen as less important to the average photographer, the sensor size is still an important feature.

A full-frame sensor will tend to (but not always) do better in low light conditions and for specific types of photography that can be crucial.

If you are an astrophotographer or a nighttime events photographer then having a full frame sensor can be incredibly useful in making sure your pictures are of the best possible quality.

But you need to look at specific sensors individually and not just go off ‘full frame vs APS-C’ because some newer APS-C sensors are incredibly good.

Recap

To recap, the best replacement cameras for the Canon EOS 90D are:

• Canon EOS R50 – if you’re on a budget
• Canon EOS R10 – best value pick overall
• Canon EOS R7 – if you have a slightly larger budget

For the sake of comparison here’s a link to the Canon EOS 90D.

If you’re not convinced that any of these alternatives are good enough and still want to stick with the 90D, then you should make sure you know what lenses are best to use on the Canon 90D.