Handgun calibers compared: .380 ACP, 9mm, .40 S&W, .45 ACP, .38 Special, .357 Magnum and .22 LR

There is no single best caliber, but 9mm Luger is the best starting point for most shooters. It balances recoil, magazine capacity, ammunition cost and availability better than the alternatives, which is why it is the most common choice for new handgun owners in the United States.

Every caliber is a trade. A larger, heavier bullet generally means more recoil, fewer rounds in the same size gun and a higher cost per round. A smaller cartridge is easier to shoot and cheaper to practice with, but delivers less energy. The right answer depends on the size of gun you want, how much you will practice and how well you handle recoil.

For self-defense, the evidence that matters is simple. A hit in the right place with a reliable gun and quality ammunition counts for far more than the number stamped on the barrel. Pick the caliber you can shoot accurately and quickly, in a gun that works every time, and that you can afford to practice with.

In guns of similar size and weight, recoil generally rises in this order: .22 LR, .380 ACP, .38 Special, 9mm, .40 S&W and .45 ACP, with .357 Magnum at the top. SAAMI notes that felt recoil is not the same as calculated recoil. The weight of the gun, the shape of the grip and the fit to your hand change how a given load feels.

That is why a tiny .380 can feel sharper than a full-size 9mm. Small, light guns have less mass to absorb recoil and less grip to hold. If you are sensitive to recoil, a larger gun in a moderate caliber is often more comfortable than a very small gun in a weaker one.

Capacity follows cartridge size. For the same grip length, a 9mm magazine holds more rounds than a .40 S&W magazine, which holds more than a .45 ACP magazine. Most revolvers hold five to eight rounds. Exact numbers vary by model, and some states limit magazine capacity by law.

• .22 LR: lowest recoil, lowest cost, rimfire, best for training and target shooting
• .380 ACP: low to moderate recoil, made for very small pistols, ammunition usually costs more than 9mm
• 9mm Luger: moderate recoil, highest capacity, widest selection of guns and ammunition
• .40 S&W: sharper recoil than 9mm, slightly less capacity, fewer new models
• .45 ACP: heavy bullet at low velocity, a firm push, lowest capacity of the semi-auto group
• .38 Special and .357 Magnum: revolver cartridges, from mild .38 Special target loads to heavy .357 Magnum recoil

.380 ACP is a reasonable choice for people who need a very small, light pistol or who cannot comfortably manage a 9mm. It fires a bullet of the same diameter as 9mm Luger from a shorter case at lower pressure, typically with bullets of 90 to 100 grains, so it produces less energy and less recoil in a gun of equal size.

The tradeoffs are real. .380 pistols are often pocket sized, which makes them easy to carry and harder to shoot well. The short sight radius and small grip demand practice. Ammunition usually costs more per round than 9mm because less of it is made, which makes that practice more expensive.

Several manufacturers now offer larger, soft shooting .380 pistols with slides that are easy to rack. These suit shooters with limited hand strength. With quality defensive ammunition that the gun feeds reliably, .380 ACP is a legitimate option. It is not the same cartridge as 9mm Luger, and the two do not interchange.

9mm Luger is popular because it does everything reasonably well at the lowest cost. Recoil is manageable for most adults. Standard magazines in compact and full-size pistols commonly hold 10 to 17 rounds or more. Nearly every handgun maker builds most of its pistol line in 9mm first.

Volume drives price. 9mm is a NATO standard pistol cartridge and the most widely produced centerfire handgun cartridge in the US market, so it is usually the cheapest centerfire handgun round to buy and the easiest to find in stock. Cheaper ammunition means more practice, and practice matters more than caliber.

Common bullet weights are 115, 124 and 147 grains. Modern hollow point designs have narrowed the performance gap between 9mm and larger calibers, and many law enforcement agencies that once issued .40 S&W have moved to 9mm. 9mm Luger is also sold as 9x19 and 9mm Parabellum, which are the same cartridge.

.40 S&W is still a capable cartridge, but it has lost ground to 9mm. Smith and Wesson and Winchester introduced it in 1990, and it became a common police cartridge for roughly two decades. It fires a larger, heavier bullet than 9mm, usually 165 or 180 grains, at higher recoil.

The costs are a sharper, snappier recoil, a round or two less capacity in the same size gun, and ammunition that usually costs more per round than 9mm. As agencies and buyers moved to 9mm, manufacturers introduced fewer new .40 models, though ammunition remains widely available.

There is an upside for buyers. Used and police trade-in .40 pistols are often priced below the same model in 9mm. If you already own one and shoot it well, there is no reason to replace it. If you are buying your first handgun, 9mm is usually the easier and cheaper path.

.45 ACP is not better or worse than 9mm. It is a different set of tradeoffs. It fires a large, heavy bullet, traditionally 230 grains, at low velocity. The US military adopted it with the M1911 pistol in 1911, and it has been in continuous use since. Many shooters describe its recoil as a slow push, not a snap, though it is still more recoil than 9mm.

The costs are capacity, size and price. A single stack .45 commonly holds seven or eight rounds, and double stack models need a large grip. Ammunition usually costs noticeably more per round than 9mm. Standard .45 ACP loads are subsonic, which is one reason the cartridge is popular with suppressor owners.

Claims that any handgun caliber reliably stops a threat with one shot are not supported. All common service calibers depend on hitting vital areas. With modern defensive ammunition, the practical differences between 9mm, .40 S&W and .45 ACP are smaller than the differences between a shooter who practices and one who does not.

They are revolver cartridges that fire the same diameter bullet, and .357 Magnum is the longer, much higher pressure version. SAAMI lists .38 Special as generally safe to fire in a revolver chambered for .357 Magnum. The reverse is not safe, and the longer .357 case is designed not to chamber fully in a .38 Special cylinder.

.38 Special is mild to moderate in recoil, especially in a steel framed revolver, and common bullet weights run from 110 to 158 grains. In a very light snub nose revolver, even .38 Special can be unpleasant. .38 Special +P is a higher pressure loading that should be used only in revolvers the manufacturer rates for it.

.357 Magnum delivers far more energy, along with heavy recoil, blast and flash, particularly from short barrels. Many owners practice with .38 Special and keep .357 Magnum for field or defensive use. Revolvers are simple to operate and tolerate long storage well, but they hold fewer rounds and reload more slowly. Both cartridges usually cost more per round than 9mm.

.22 LR is an excellent choice for learning, practice and target shooting, and a weak choice for defense. It has almost no recoil, little noise compared with centerfire rounds, and by a wide margin the lowest cost per round of any common cartridge. A .22 pistol lets a new shooter build grip, sight and trigger skills without flinching.

The limits come from the design. .22 LR is a rimfire cartridge, with the priming compound spun into the rim of the case, and rimfire ignition is generally less reliable than centerfire ignition. Misfires are more common, and semi-auto .22 pistols can be picky about which loads they cycle. The small, light bullet also delivers much less energy than any centerfire option here.

For people who truly cannot manage a centerfire handgun, a reliable .22 they can shoot accurately is better than a larger gun they cannot. For everyone else, .22 LR earns its place as the inexpensive trainer next to a centerfire handgun. Try several loads and use the one your gun runs best.

.22 LR is the cheapest by a wide margin, and 9mm Luger is usually the cheapest centerfire option. Practice loads in .380 ACP, .38 Special, .40 S&W and .45 ACP typically cost more per round than 9mm, often by a meaningful amount, and .357 Magnum is usually the most expensive of this group. Defensive hollow points cost more than practice ammunition in every caliber.

These are typical relationships, not fixed prices. Ammunition prices move with demand, raw material costs and import supply, and the gaps between calibers widen and narrow. During shortages, the most popular calibers can sell out first and the usual order can flip for a while.

Compare by cost per round, which is the total price with shipping and tax divided by the number of rounds. The 2A List ammo pages show current in-stock offers for each caliber sorted by cost per round, with recent price history. If you plan to shoot often, the ammunition bill over a few years can exceed the price of the gun, so it belongs in the decision.