Perhaps the most popular modern element in the Grand Theft Auto franchise, it’s Grand Theft Auto Online that let GTA fans revel in a dream come true - become a powerful criminal and head their criminal empire, this time with friends. Set in the fictional state of San Andreas, GTA Online lets up to 30 players explore an open world that lets players begin their journey as a fledgling criminal and work their way into becoming a powerful force to reckon with.
And given how players can work cooperatively in both side missions and complicated “Heists,” players who want to show off their fortunes in style would probably want to brag about more sophisticated vehicles such as helicopters to their friends. Thankfully, GTA Online isn’t short on awesome helicopters worth the grab - and at a cost.
10 Swift
- Cost: $1,500,000
Players looking for an ever-reliable chopper might not need to look far for the helicopter of choice. The Swift is known for its sheer speed, making it one of the best first choppers to own for anyone just starting to earn money in the game.
And even then, its nature as a beginner chopper doesn’t mean it’s to be underestimated. The Swift has great acceleration and responsiveness, making it great for dodging various attacks. Moreover, its back access allows players to don rifles and machine guns to fight external forces, essentially giving the Swift combat options when maneuvered by a team.
9 Cargobob
- Cost: $1,790,000 (Original), $1,995,000 (Jetsam Version)
It’s quite weird for players to appreciate the Cargobob since it’s not a chopper that possesses any particularly interesting features. It doesn’t have defensive or offensive capabilities, making it quite a weak chopper in terms of overall combat.
However, the Cargobob shines in a feature obvious from the name itself: it can carry cars. The Cargobob has a hook that can latch onto the roof of any car and lift it off the ground, making it easy for players to carry stylish cars all over Los Santos during import and export missions. Owning a Cargobob instead of stealing one can make these missions much easier to accomplish.
8 Sea Sparrow
- Cost: $1,815,000
While similar to both the Buzzard for its compact design, the Sea Sparrow is definitely one of the most stable choppers for players to handle. Its design allows players to make quick moves and is faster compared to the Buzzard, making it one of the best civilian aircrafts available. It boasts a missile launcher and a minigun, offering minimal offense against most enemies.
However, its most prominent feature is its landing option, which allows the Sea Sparrow to land on any kind of body of water. This makes for easier reconnaissance and emergency landings on properties surrounded by water and can make for a convenient escape route against unsuspecting foes. After all, not a lot of choppers can sit on bodies of water!
7 Savage
- Cost: $1,850,000 (Trade), $2,593,500 (Original)
When it comes to PVP, players need to adjust to the game’s rather complicated aerial combat by ensuring complete and total control over their weapons, especially choppers. Thankfully, the Savage fulfills this role as a military chopper. Its main weapons are its explosive cannons and homing launchers, allowing the Savage to target other vehicles in the air with relative ease. However, it’s important to note that explosive cannons are often found in jets, so the Savage is one of the very few choppers to even have them.
What’s even more interesting is the Savage’s prominent feature. Unlike other military choppers, the Savage can actually hover - helping players aim at other targets much easier. This is a great chopper to have in erratic PVE, and the Savage’s decent speed makes it a nifty vehicle to have to run away from incursions.
6 Buzzard
- Cost: $1,750,000
Of all the helicopters, it’s the Buzzard that hits the middle ground for its “best of both worlds” offerings. Firstly, it boasts decent damage thanks to its homing missiles, as well as the ability to have two companions draw their weapons to return fire to opponents. While it doesn’t have defensive capabilities, its nifty fire-from-inside option is cool for multiplayer.
Secondly, its best feature is its gimmick. Players can actually have the Buzzard spawn next to them by just using the CEO menu, making the purchase not just worth the while but also convenient, as players can dominate the local airspace in just a single click.
5 Havok
- Cost: $2,300,900
Thanks to its lightweight and compact design, the Havok is easily one of the most versatile and fastest helicopters available for use. Of course, this kind of maneuverability demands some skill on part of the users, but a Havok master can easily get out of sticky situations with the right twisting and turning if players can invest the right amount of money.
Being used primarily for transport, the Havok doesn’t have a lot of defensive options. However, it does have countermeasures such as smokes for distractions, flares against homing missiles, and chaffs against missile launchers. This gives Havok a lot of defensive options to help players escape during firefights.
4 Volatus
- Cost: $2,295,000
Players with a penchant for showing off won’t go wrong with the Volatus, especially considering both its stylish exterior and incredible interior finish. Given its expensive nature, the Volatus doesn’t have any weapons and defenses, making it a bit weak in terms of PVP.
However, the Volatus has one area where it shines: speed. The Volatus is easily the fastest among the choppers in the game, making it pretty convenient for players and friends who have to zig-zag around the map a lot of times in order to reach their destination.
3 F1-Hunter
- Cost: $3,100,000 (Trade), $4,123,000 (Original)
Despite its lack of presence in the PVP space in general, the rather expensiveF1-Hunter is a decent chopper to own when it comes to PVP. Compared to other choppers that are stylish or have nifty features, the F1-Hunter has one purpose: search and destroy. Its main weapons are its rocket barrage and homing missiles, making them fairly deadly when constantly switched.
Moreover, players who have co-pilots can activate the auto-cannons, weapons that boast a decent rate of fire, and unleash explosive rounds. Not to mention, the armor of the F1-Hunter can take as many as three RPG rockets before being considerably damaged.
2 Akula
- Cost: $2,785,000 (Trade), $3,704,050 (Original)
While helicopters are certainly some of the flashiest vehicles one can own in any game, GTA Online and the growing popularity of its Heist missions can benefit from a stealth chopper like the Akula. Suitable to both PVP and grinders alike, the Akula has the special feature of turning invisible to everyone. In terms of weapons, the Akula possesses homing or barrage missiles, a mounted turret, or bombs.
Pressing H or right on the D-pad triggers stealth mode, which retracts all of its weapons but will have the Akula disappear off the map. Players can still physically see the helicopter, but this makes tracking much harder with the chopper gone from their radars - making this a beauty and beast to behold in PVP.
1 Sparrow
- Cost: $1,815,000
Nothing beats practicality when it comes to the best vehicles in GTA Online, especially for helicopters that have to dominate the general airspace of the vicinity. Thanks to the Sparrow, players can get the best in terms of air supremacy at the convenience of a Kosatka Submarine, especially since the chopper spawns on top of the Submarine! However, players do need to purchase the chopper and the submarine separately.
Of course, the Sparrow isn’t as strong in terms of PVP given its weak armor and homing missiles being its sole weapons. However, the Sparrow shines in its Heist capabilities, as it’s a great way to complete the Cayo Perico Heist, one of the highest-earning Heists in the game. Players can hop onto the Submarine to get access to the mission area and pop into the chopper to get to and from the objective much faster.
The next-gen remaster of Grand Theft Auto 5 was released on March 15, 2022, to the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.