F4 (F405) vs F7 (F722) vs H7 (H743) compared: power, UARTs, gyro and price. Which flight controller MCU to pick for your FPV drone without overpaying.
The number on a flight controller's spec sheet (F4, F7, H7) is the microcontroller (MCU) family that runs Betaflight. It doesn't measure board quality, only raw compute and how many peripherals it can drive comfortably. Here's what actually changes between F405, F722 and H743, and which one suits what you're building.
The MCU is the flight controller's processor: it reads the gyro, runs the PID loops and drives the ESCs hundreds of times per second. F4, F7 and H7 are STMicroelectronics families, faster as the number climbs: the F405 runs around 168 MHz, the F722 about 216 MHz and the H743 reaches 480 MHz. More clock means room for fast loops and aggressive filtering without maxing out the chip. For a conventional 5", any of the three has power to spare; the gap shows up once you stack peripherals and filters.
In practice, what usually decides the purchase isn't the clock but the UARTs, the serial ports where you connect receiver, VTX, GPS, ESC telemetry and so on. An F405 exposes fewer (often 3-5 usable) and you run out fast if you want GPS plus a digital VTX plus telemetry. The F722 adds one or two more and breathes easier. The H743 is the one with headroom (7-8 or more), and it often ships with dual gyro for better filtering. If your build carries lots of accessories, count UARTs before MHz.
If you're building a 5" freestyle or race quad without GPS, an F405 does the job and saves money; the F722 is the safe pick if you want headroom for a few euros more. Step up to H743 only when the peripherals demand it: long range with GPS, many modules, heavy filtering or a complex cinelifter, or if you want to buy once and forget it. Paying for an H7 on a normal 5" is spending on power you won't use.
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