Canon EOS 90Dvs EOS RPvs Sony A9 III

GearFrame · Updated March 2026

Canon Canon EOS 90D Canon Canon EOS 90D (2019) From £849 Best for Sports, wildlife & DSLR enthusiasts View Canon EOS 90D
VS
Canon EOS RP Canon EOS RP (2019) From £799 Best for Entry full-frame stills photography View EOS RP
VS
Sony Sony A9 III Sony Sony A9 III (2023) From £5999 Best for Sports & action professionals View Sony A9 III

Which should you buy?

Sports, Wildlife & Dslr Enthusiasts — Canon EOS 90D (2019): The best APS-C DSLR Canon ever made — 32MP, 10fps, weather sealing, and an optical viewfinder experience no mirrorless can replicate.

Entry Full-Frame Stills Photography — EOS RP (2019): An affordable gateway into the RF system. The RP makes sense as a stepping stone camera — if you're committed to Canon RF glass, this is the cheapest full-frame body to buy those lenses for. Just manage expectations on video and battery life.

Sports & Action Professionals — Sony A9 III (2023): A paradigm-shifting camera — the global shutter eliminates every rolling shutter limitation that has constrained action photography for years.

↓ Full specifications below

Canon EOS 90D (2019)

  • You're invested in Canon EF DSLR lenses and don't want to switch systems
  • You shoot wildlife or sports and prefer an optical viewfinder
  • You want a mid-range DSLR upgrade without going mirrorless

EOS RP (2019)

  • Canon users who want to start investing in RF glass affordably
  • Stills photographers who shoot primarily in good light
  • Anyone coming from a Canon DSLR wanting the RF system at low cost
  • Travel photographers who prioritise compactness over video specs

Sony A9 III (2023)

  • You shoot professional sport, motorsport, or action and need zero rolling shutter distortion
  • You need reliable high-speed flash sync for studio or on-location action work
  • You want the absolute pinnacle of Sony's action and sports camera technology

Quick take: The canon eos 90d has the highest resolution at 32mp; the eos rp is the most affordable; only the canon eos 90d, sony a9 iii are weather sealed. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.

Full specifications

Specification Canon EOS 90D (2019)EOS RP (2019)Sony A9 III (2023)
Price £849 £799 £5,999
Sensor 32.5MP APS-C CMOS (Dual Pixel AF) 26.2MP Full-Frame CMOS 24.6MP full-frame Exmor RS CMOS (global shutter)
Resolution 32.5MP 26.2MP 24.6MP
Video 4K/30p (1.6× crop), FHD/120p 4K/24p (with 1.7× crop), 1080p/60p 4K/120p, 4K/60p, 1080p/240p
Autofocus Dual Pixel CMOS AF (live view), 45-point phase-detect (OVF) Dual Pixel CMOS AF, 4779 manually selectable positions AI subject recognition AF, 759-point phase-detect
Stabilisation None (no IBIS) None (no IBIS) 8-stop IBIS
Burst Rate 10fps mechanical 5fps mechanical 120fps blackout-free electronic
Battery Life ~1300 shots (CIPA with OVF) ~250 shots (CIPA) — very limited 530 shots (CIPA)
Weight 701g body only 485g (body, battery, card) 703g body only
Dimensions 140.7 × 104.8 × 76.8mm 132.5 × 85.0 × 70.0mm 136.1 × 96.9 × 82.9mm
Weather Sealed Yes No Yes
Viewfinder Optical pentaprism, 100% coverage, 0.95× magnification EVF, 2.36M dots, 0.70× magnification 0.64" Quad-XGA OLED EVF, 9.44M dots
Screen 3.0" vari-angle touchscreen 3.0" vari-angle touchscreen, 1.04M dots 3.2" fully articulating touchscreen
Mount Canon EF / EF-S Canon RF-mount Sony FE (E-mount)
Memory Cards Dual SD UHS-II slots Single SD UHS-II Dual CFexpress Type A / SD UHS-II
Connectivity USB 2.0, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth USB-C 3.2, HDMI A, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3
⚡ Compare specs side by side Canon EOS 90D prices → EOS RP prices → Sony A9 III prices →

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