What Can a University Lab Actually Buy in North America at $6k, $20k, $50k or $100k?

By the BotInfo.ai Research Team · Prices read in US dealer carts, October 5, 2026

The short answer Checked Oct 5, 2026

Up to $6,000: Teaching and outreach, not research: a Unitree Go2 Air or Pro robot dog, built without secondary development. Both are quote-only on BotInfo, so their prices are on request.

Up to $20,000: A programmable humanoid: the Unitree R1 EDU Standard, $15,950, or EDU Smart, $18,900. Or a programmable Go2 EDU robot dog from $11,190.

Up to $50,000: The Unitree G1 EDU, from $43,900, or an R1 EDU with dexterous hands from $28,900.

Up to $100,000: A G1 EDU with dexterous hands, $51,900 to $83,900, or the full-size H2 EDU Smart, $66,800.

How to pay: A formal quote that procurement turns into a purchase order, with the payment terms and ship date printed on it.

Affiliate links: we may earn a referral fee. Disclosure Order the R1 EDU Standard, $15,950 → Every build by budget ↓ Formal quote for a PO →

What each budget buys, build by build

Robots a North American lab could order on October 5, 2026, at the dealer's cart line that day before tax (the H2 EDU Smart is the dealer's listed price). Order opens the dealer's checkout or its configurator, where you pick the hand named in your row. Ask or Quote sends the question to us first. Budget for tax, spares and a spare battery on top.

Robot and build	US price	Order
Up to $6,000 · teaching, demos and outreach; no research SDK
Unitree Go2 ProRobot dog for demos and outreach · no secondary development (Unitree)	Price on requestQuote desk	Request a quote →
Unitree Go2 AirEntry robot dog · no secondary development	Price on requestQuote desk	Request a quote →
Noetix Bumi PRO CompactAbout 94 cm humanoid for classrooms · quote-only on BotInfo · no FCC filing found, so we confirm the FCC basis first	Price on requestQuote desk	Ask
Up to $20,000 · a programmable humanoid or robot dog
Unitree R1 EDU StandardProgrammable humanoid, about 123 cm · Jetson Orin 40 TOPS · teaching and first SDK workCheapest programmable Unitree humanoid	$15,950Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree R1 EDU SmartSame robot, 100 TOPS for on-board vision and language models	$18,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree Go2 EDU StandardProgrammable robot dog · full secondary development (Unitree)	$11,190Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree Go2 EDU Mid-360Go2 EDU with a Mid-360 LiDAR for mapping and navigation work	$17,055Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree Go2 EDU Hesai XT16Go2 EDU with a Hesai XT16 LiDAR	$19,430Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Booster K1 EDUKid-size programmable humanoid · quote-only on BotInfo · Booster's only FCC grant is for the remote control, so we confirm the FCC basis first	Price on requestQuote desk	Ask
Up to $50,000 · the G1 EDU, or dexterous hands on the R1
Unitree G1 EDU Pro, dummy hands127 cm · Python, C++ and ROS 2 · locomotion, SDK and teachingCheapest programmable G1	$43,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1 EDU Pro HDex1-1 Advanced grippers · simple pick-and-place	$44,800Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1 EDU Pro SAKESAKE EZGripper hands · pick-and-place	$49,700Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree R1 EDU Pro CFive-finger BrainCo Revo 2 Basic hands on the R1Cheapest dexterous build here	$28,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree R1 EDU Pro BDex3-1 three-finger hands with touch sensing on the R1	$32,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1-D Standard ADual-arm G1 on a wheeled or fixed base · in stock at our North American partner dealer · no FCC filing names the G1-D under Unitree's code, so get the FCC basis in writing before your PO	$38,800Cart checkOct 11, 2026	Order
Up to $100,000 · dexterous G1 hands, or a full-size humanoid
Unitree G1 EDU Pro EBrainCo Revo 2 Basic five-finger hands · grasping and human-robot interactionLowest-priced dexterous G1	$51,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1 EDU Ultimate, dummy handsMore arm and waist mobility for mobile manipulation	$53,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1 EDU Pro ADex3-1 three-finger hands · grasping and UnifoLM-VLA-0 work	$54,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree H2 EDU SmartFull-size programmable humanoid · pre-cutoff FCC IDFull-size	$66,800Dealer listingOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1 EDU Ultimate DInspire E2 five-finger hands with tactile sensing · tactile research	$73,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order
Unitree G1 EDU Ultimate IWuji Hand 2, 20 DOF per hand, tactile · the highest-DOF G1Top of the G1 range	$83,900Cart checkOct 5, 2026	Order

The Unitree EDU, G1, G1-D and H2 buttons go to an authorized US dealer that ships within North America; the G1-D line was read in its cart on October 11, 2026. The Go2 Air, Go2 Pro, Bumi and K1 rows are quote-only on BotInfo and go through us, so the price, the FCC basis and the delivery question are answered in writing before your PO. Unitree's own store also sells an R1 Air at $4,900 shipped from China, before $300 to $1,200 shipping and import duties. For Unitree robots, only EDU configurations run your code; the Basic models have no SDK.

Quick picks by what the lab will do

A first humanoid courseR1 EDU Standard · $15,950

On-board vision and language modelsR1 EDU Smart · $18,900

Legged locomotion and navigationGo2 EDU $11,190, or Mid-360 LiDAR $17,055

Humanoid locomotion and sim-to-realG1 EDU Pro, dummy hands · $43,900

Grasping and manipulationR1 EDU Pro C $28,900 or G1 EDU Pro E $51,900

Tactile and high-DOF handsG1 EDU Ultimate D $73,900 or Ultimate I $83,900

Labs outside North America

The US dealer's buttons ship within North America only. Elsewhere, the Go2 Air and Pro, the Unitree R1 Air and the Booster K1 go through our quote desk. For those and for EDU builds, send us your country, the build and your deadline: we reply with the routes we can confirm and a dated, landed-cost estimate.

Request a quote for your country →

How the purchase order works, and the terms trap

A US university buys a humanoid robot the way it buys any lab instrument: a written, dated quote goes to procurement, procurement issues a purchase order, and the terms that matter are the ones printed on that quote.

Specify the exact platform, configuration and add-ons. Not “the education one”.
Quote: get it in writing, with a validity window next to the lead time.
Purchase order: confirm the PO is accepted, and the address or portal it goes to.
Terms in writing: deposit or net terms, and if net, how many days.
Acceptance: agree in advance what must be true on arrival.

The trap is step four. Published advice often asserts which sellers offer net-30 payment, grant-friendly invoicing or university account managers. We could not trace those claims to any page that verifies them. Terms are set per quote and per institution, so a payment term does not exist until it is printed on your quote or order confirmation. An answer you only saw on a website, this one included, is not a term.

Request a formal quote →

Can a US university legally buy these robots?

The FCC rule. Since July 28, 2026, foreign-produced mobile robots need FCC authorization granted before that date, or a Conditional Approval, to be imported and sold. The Unitree G1, R1, H2 and Go2 hold FCC IDs granted before the cutoff (FCC record read October 5, 2026), so the Unitree rows above can be bought. We found no FCC ID for the Booster K1 robot or the Noetix Bumi, which is why those rows say Ask. Model by model: the FCC robot rule.

The 1260H list. Unitree was designated under Section 1260H in a Department of War notice published June 10, 2026. That restricts Department of War contracting, not university purchases: it matters if the robot will be used to perform a Department of War contract. Details and dates: Unitree and the 1260H list.

Your sponsored-programs office decides whether a funding source adds rules of its own. Ask before you request the quote, not after.

Frequently asked questions

What humanoid robot can a university lab buy for under $20,000?

A programmable Unitree R1 EDU: the EDU Standard was $15,950 and the EDU Smart $18,900 in a US dealer's cart on October 5, 2026. A programmable Go2 EDU robot dog starts at $11,190. Every option by budget.

What can a lab buy for $50,000?

The Unitree G1 EDU, from $43,900 with dummy hands, or an R1 EDU with dexterous hands from $28,900 (October 5, 2026). The $50,000 tier.

What can a lab buy for $100,000?

A G1 EDU with dexterous hands, $51,900 to $83,900, or the full-size Unitree H2 EDU Smart at $66,800, at a US dealer on October 5, 2026. The $100,000 tier.

How much does a Unitree G1 cost for a university?

Programmable G1 EDU builds ran $43,900 to $83,900 at a US dealer on October 5, 2026, depending on the hands. The $17,990 G1 Basic has no SDK. Every G1 build.

Can a university buy a humanoid robot on a purchase order?

Yes, through a formal quote that procurement turns into a PO. Payment terms exist only once they are printed on the quote. How the PO works.

Is it legal for a US university to buy a Unitree robot?

Generally yes: the Unitree G1, R1, H2 and Go2 hold FCC IDs granted before the July 28, 2026 cutoff, and the 1260H list restricts Department of War contracting, not university purchases. Eligibility.

How fast can a lab get a robot?

Every model with an Order button was listed in stock when we read it: October 5, 2026, and October 11 for the G1-D. Get the ship date written on the quote before you commit a grant deadline: request one.

What should a quote request include?

The exact configuration, whether a PO is accepted and where it goes, the payment schedule, a committed lead time with the quote's validity, and the acceptance condition. Why each matters.

What to put in your quote request

Five items, and they are the five that procurement offices bounce orders over. Copy them into the request:

The exact configuration: platform, build and add-ons, named. For a G1 EDU, the body (Pro or Ultimate) and the hand.
Whether an institutional purchase order is accepted, and the address or portal it goes to.
The payment schedule in writing: deposit or net terms, and if net, the number of days.
A committed lead time, with the quote's validity window next to it. A price good for 30 days against a 10-week lead time is a problem to see before the PO, not after.
The acceptance condition: what has to be true on arrival for the unit to count as delivered as quoted.

Our quote desk takes the configuration, asks the seller those five questions, including the payment-terms question, and returns the answers in writing.

Grants, fiscal years and budget justification

Plan from dated figures

Prices in this category move often: a figure from October may not survive a spring approval cycle. Plan from the dated prices above; buy from a quote.
If funds must be committed by a fiscal-year or grant deadline, put the deadline in the quote request so the validity window and lead time are written to fit it.
Configuration drives most of the spread: the gap between hands on one G1 is wider than the gap between some platforms.

Write a justification reviewers accept

Map the robot onto an equipment line with your sponsored-programs office.
Cite dated prices and say where they came from: a reviewer who can check a number stops questioning it.
If availability is time-sensitive, say so with the date you checked it.

For purchasing offices: the free G1 Procurement Packet and R1 Procurement Packet carry configuration pricing and budget-justification text. Teaching labs planning spares: the R1 classroom cost guide.

Delivery, acceptance and the paperwork you keep

On arrival, check the unit against the quoted configuration before you close out the PO: degrees of freedom, compute module and included accessories are the three that quietly differ. Keep the dated quote, the order confirmation and the delivery record together as one chain. Grant audits ask for exactly that chain.

Before any of that, decide whether a purchase is the right instrument at all. For one event or a project with a hard end date, a rental can beat an asset on the register: our rent-or-buy guide works through where that line falls.

Ready to buy on a purchase order?

Tell us the build, the quantity and your budget deadline. You get a dated, written quote within one business day.

Request a formal quote →

All humanoids for sale All robot dogs for sale Which Unitree G1 to buy Every R1 build Which Go2 for research The FCC robot rule, model by model

Programmable lab robots from $11,190Budgets ↑PO quote