Most GoPro owners need about five accessories, and most of the ones in the big bundle kits are filler. The five: a spare battery (two if you shoot video), a fast microSD card you trust, a grip or handle — a floaty one if you’re going near water — a mount for your actual sport, and, if you dive or go deep in surf, GoPro’s Protective Housing. After that, the Media Mod earns its keep for anyone recording audio or feeding a monitor, a spare lens cover is cheap insurance — and the accessory I personally reach for most is a trigger grip: a pistol-style handle with a shutter button under your finger, so you can shoot one-handed without looking at the camera. Everything else is situational. Below: which accessories fit which camera (the part that trips people up), then what I’d actually buy for water, travel/vlogging, action sports, and power.
The compatibility rule of thumb: anything that attaches via GoPro’s three-prong mounting fingers — mounts, grips, poles, harnesses, suction cups — works across every GoPro. Anything that wraps the body or plugs into it — batteries, housings, Mods, lens covers — changed at the HERO8→HERO9 body redesign and again with the HERO13’s new battery and lens system, and the HERO (2024), HERO11 Black Mini, and MAX cameras each have their own rules. I keep the full battery compatibility chart and housing/depth chart on separate pages; the short version is in the table.
Which GoPro accessories fit which camera
| Accessory | HERO13 Black | HERO12 / 11 / 10 / 9 Black | HERO8 Black | HERO (2024) | HERO11 Black Mini | MAX / MAX2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery | Enduro for HERO13 Black (AEBAT-001, 1900mAh) — NOT the 9–12 battery | Enduro ADBAT-011 (1720mAh, white end cap); HERO9/10 also take the older Standard battery | HERO8 battery (AJBAT-001) | Built in, not removable | Built in, not removable | MAX: ACBAT-001; MAX2: Enduro AMBAT-001 — not interchangeable |
| Protective Housing (60 m) | ADDIV-001 | ADDIV-001 (same housing for all five) | AJDIV-001 (HERO8-specific) | No GoPro housing; aftermarket only | AFDIV (Mini-specific) | No GoPro dive housing |
| Media Mod (mic, HDMI out, cold shoes) | ADFMD-001 | ADFMD-001 (same for 9–13) | HERO8 Media Mod (AJFMD-001) | Not supported | Not supported | Not supported |
| Max Lens Mod | 2.0 (ADWAL-002) or original (ADWAL-001) | HERO12: 2.0 or original; HERO9–11: original (ADWAL-001) | Not supported | Not supported | Not supported | Not applicable |
| Lens cover / add-on lenses | New HB-Series mount: Ultra Wide, Macro, Anamorphic, ND filter kit (HERO13 only); replaceable cover | Removable, replaceable cover (same part for 9–12); ND/filters clip over it | Fixed lens cover (not removable) | Not listed as removable in GoPro’s manual | Fixed | MAX: clear Protective Lenses; MAX2: replaceable lenses |
| Mounts, grips, poles, harnesses, suction cups | Yes — built-in folding fingers | Yes — built-in folding fingers | Yes — built-in folding fingers | Yes — built-in fingers | Standard mounts yes (fingers top and bottom); bracket-style grips and cages are a different shape — check fit | Yes |
| Cages and frames | HERO13 body (slightly changed latch/door; check the listing) | HERO9–12 share a body; cages interchangeable | HERO8-specific | Model-specific | Model-specific | Model-specific |
| The Remote (ARMTE-003) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Check GoPro’s current list | Yes | Yes |
Two traps worth repeating because they account for most of the returns I hear about: the HERO13’s Enduro battery looks almost identical to the HERO9–12 Enduro but isn’t interchangeable (the 13’s is all black; the older one has a white end cap), and the original MAX and the MAX2 use completely different batteries despite the shared name. Details, model numbers, and chargers are in the battery compatibility chart.
What I’d actually buy, by how you shoot
The one I’d add to every kit: a trigger grip
Before the use-by-use lists, one accessory that cuts across all of them. A trigger grip puts a shutter/record button at your fingertip on a pistol-style handle, so you can shoot one-handed, from odd angles, without hunting for the camera’s top button or the touchscreen — on a boat, on skis, with a kid in the other hand. It’s the GoPro accessory I’ve used more than any other, and most people have never heard of it. Many models float, which covers the water case too; the version I use and what to look for are in my trigger grip write-up.
For water: snorkeling, surf, pool, boats
- A floaty grip or floating handle — GoPros sink, fast, and they’re grey. This is the accessory I’d buy before any other for water.
- A wrist strap or tether as backup to the float.
- The Protective Housing if you’ll go past the body’s own depth rating (10 m on most models): see depth ratings for every model.
- A red/magenta underwater filter for snorkeling or diving; a dome port for half-in/half-out shots.
- Anti-fog inserts if you use a housing.
For travel and vlogging
- The Media Mod for the 3.5mm mic input, HDMI out, and cold shoes — the single biggest audio upgrade; pair it with one of these external microphones.
- If you vlog to camera, the front screen built into the HERO9 Black through HERO13 Black covers most people. The Display Mod adds a front-facing screen through the Media Mod; check that it supports your model before buying.
- A small tripod/grip (GoPro’s Shorty or a 3-Way) and a USB power bank + pass-through door for long time-lapses and interviews.
- Spare batteries (two) and a dual charger that matches your battery family.
- If you feed a monitor or capture card, the HDMI cable guide saves a trip back to the store.
For action sports: bikes, helmets, cars, skiing
- Mount for the job: chest harness (POV with hands visible), helmet swivel or curved adhesive mount, handlebar/seatpost clamp, or a suction-cup mount for car bodywork and windows.
- Adhesive mounts in both curved and flat — and give them 24 hours to cure.
- A tether or safety leash for anything over water, speed, or height.
- A trigger grip if you want one-handed shutter control; the Max Lens Mod if you want the widest, most stabilized POV (HERO9–13).
For power and storage (everyone)
- Two spare batteries of the right family (table above) — Enduro for cold weather.
- A dual external charger matched to the battery (the HERO13’s charger differs from the 9–12 one).
- A fast microSD you trust — V30 minimum, 128GB or more for high bitrates; my GoPro SD card recommendations are tested per model, and format the card in the camera before the first shoot.
- A spare lens cover for models with removable covers (HERO9–13): they scratch, and a new one restores image quality in ten seconds.
Upgrading from an older GoPro? What changes
HERO8 → HERO9 and later: new, slightly larger body and a new battery; housings, cages, Mods, and lens covers all changed, but mounts carried over. HERO9 → HERO12: essentially the same body, battery, housing, and Mods — accessories interchange freely, which is why the ADDIV-001 housing and ADFMD-001 Media Mod list all five. HERO12 → HERO13: new battery (not backward compatible), new lens system with the HB-Series add-on lenses, but the same housing and Media Mod. HERO (2024) and HERO11 Black Mini: built-in batteries and no Mod support, so the accessory list is mounts, grips, and (for the Mini) its own housing. MAX and MAX2: their own batteries (not interchangeable). MAX uses clear Protective Lenses; the MAX2’s lenses are replaceable. Standard mounts work.
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Common questions
Do old GoPro mounts work with the new cameras?
Yes. The three-prong mount hasn’t changed since the first HERO, so any mount, grip, or harness you own works with every current GoPro, including the HERO13, HERO (2024), Mini, and MAX. That goes for clips, too, like GoPro’s Magnetic Swivel Clip.
Are the big accessory bundle kits worth it?
Rarely. They’re padded with adapters and mounts you won’t use. Buy the five things above for how you shoot, and add specific mounts as a need appears.
Which HERO13 accessories are HERO13-only?
The Enduro battery for HERO13 and its charger, and the HB-Series lenses and ND filter kit. The housing, Media Mod, Max Lens Mod, and all mounts are shared with the HERO12 and earlier.
I have a Hero 5 Black. I have so many attachments and don’t want to break my wallet with the new hero 10 attachments. Will my hero 5 black head strap, chest strap, selfie stick, ect work with this new model?
The accessories you’ve mentioned should work just fine. In general, anything that attaches via the usual GoPro mount will work. And all of those fall into that category.
Things that won’t work from HERO5 to HERO10 include: batteries and chargers, frames or housings or anything that goes around the camera body, and most lens filters.