Unitree/Humanoid
Unitree G1
The research humanoid that set the field's price floor.
- One of the cheapest walking humanoids on sale, from $13.5k
- Folds down to about 690 mm for transport
- Unitree shipped 5,500+ humanoids in 2025
Realism index
22/100
Our editorial estimate of how close this machine is to a lifelike human companion — six weighted dimensions, built from public evidence. How we score · The whole field, ranked
See it move
Photos flatter; motion is where realism is won or lost.
The G1 isn't here to be loved — it's here to remind everyone how cheap a walking humanoid can be. For roughly the price of a car, Unitree sells a folding, 35-kilogram machine that balances, walks, picks itself up off the floor, and runs the viral party tricks (dancing, "kung fu") that fill robotics feeds.
It's a research platform, plainly: exposed chassis, no face, no warmth, a two-hour battery, and a base model that ships without hands. But it has a thriving developer ecosystem and over-the-air updates, and it helped Unitree ship more than 5,500 humanoids in 2025, though one research firm put rival AgiBot ahead on shipments in the first half of 2026. It also keeps a clear US path for now: Unitree says the G1 received its FCC equipment authorization before July 28, 2026, when the FCC added foreign-produced humanoid robots to its Covered List, so it can still be sold there. New Unitree models would need a Department of War conditional approval.
For this directory, the G1 is the price anchor. Every companion's six-figure sticker looks the way it does partly because a credible humanoid body now costs less than a used sedan — and comes from Hangzhou. Unitree has since gone lower still with the smaller R1, from $4,900.
Our verdict
The case for
- One of the lowest-cost production humanoids you can buy
- Compact and portable — folds for transport
- A strong research SDK and OTA-update ecosystem
The case against
- Child-sized — limited reach and ~2 kg/arm payload
- Roughly two-hour runtime
- The base model ships without hands
- Cheaper humanoids now exist, including Unitree's own R1 from $4,900
What it can do
- Bipedal walking, balancing and self-righting
- Optional three-finger dexterous hands
- Dynamic skills — dancing, "kung fu," getting up — via learning
The paper trail
Dated milestones — announcements, prices, promised ship windows — as they were made. We add to this record; we don't rewrite it.
FCC Covered List: G1 still sellable in the US
After the FCC barred new foreign-produced humanoid models from US equipment authorization on July 28, Unitree said the G1, authorized earlier, can still be sold in the US; future models would need a Department of War conditional approval.
5,500+ humanoids confirmed delivered in 2025
Unitree's official clarification: over 5,500 humanoids sold and delivered in 2025 (6,500+ produced) — the G1 genuinely shipped at scale.
Listed at 99,000 yuan (~$13,700) after its Spring Festival Gala fame; the first listing quickly sold out.
August 2024 — mass-production version shown
A refined, production-ready G1, still from $16,000.
Show 1 earlier milestones ↓Hide earlier milestones ↑
Introduced at ICRA 2024 in Yokohama — a fraction of the $90,000 H1.
Quick answers
Composed from the directory record above — so they can't drift from the data.
- What is Unitree G1?
- Unitree G1 is a humanoid-class machine (general-purpose) from Unitree (China). A folding, child-sized research humanoid that walks, dances and self-rights — for the price of a car, not a house.
- How much does Unitree G1 cost?
- From $13.5k on unitree.com, excluding tax and shipping (launched at ~$16k); EDU versions are quote-only. Prices in this category move often — the paper trail on this page records every change we log.
- Can you buy Unitree G1 right now?
- Yes — Unitree G1 is shipping to customers today. The maker's current label is "Shipping now".
- How lifelike is Unitree G1?
- We rate Unitree G1 22/100 on the gfs.ai Realism Index — an editorial score across six weighted dimensions, built only from public evidence. It scores strongest on reality (58/100) and weakest on face (0/100).
- Who makes Unitree G1?
- Unitree G1 is built by Unitree — founded 2016, headquartered in Hangzhou, China. The company's focus: affordable quadruped and humanoid robots.
Keep exploring
Related machines
Optimus
Tesla
Tesla's bid to build humanoids by the million.
Atlas
Boston Dynamics
The capability ceiling of the whole field.
Clone Alpha
Clone Robotics
An android built like a body — muscle, bone, and a lot of unproven promise.
Apollo
Apptronik
A working humanoid, already on pilot lines.