Shooter’s Guide To Choosing The Best Self-Defense Cartridge

When it comes time for your first self-defense firearm, you have a multitude of different options to choose from. To be sure, there are many different self-defense cartridges available to you today, some of them much better than others. Let's take a look at several of these options to help you narrow your search down to the best possible choice in your own personal, self-defense.

One of Gun Carrier's largest audiences are those brand new to the shooting world. We need to take the time to educate those who haven't been doing this as long as we have, which is why we decided that this was a good topic. Make sure you add your thoughts to the bottom, so that we can all pave the way for new gun carriers.

Please note that this is just a guide, and not meant to be the end all list of self-defense cartridges, because there are more available to you than what is on this list. I've left off the very big projectiles, like the .44 Magnum, .45 Colt and larger rounds because they are just too powerful for a new shooter.

Let's get started:

.22 Long Rifle

I have a firm stance on this that says, you should only carry a gun chambered in .22 if you've got absolutely nothing else to carry. After all, the best gun for you is the one you've got access to. If it's a .22, so be it. It shouldn't be your first pick, however. Having said all of that, smaller cartridges tend to lend the shooter to be more accurate at the range. If you can hit your target, you can hit an attacker.

Guns chambered in .22 are also great for new shooters who are just learning. It helps them get acquainted into the sport of shooting, and helps to aid young shooters learn the basics. Overall, this should not be used as a self-defense round, unless it is done as a backup.

.22 Magnum

A step in the right direction is the .22 magnum. While it pushes a similar sized projectile as the long rifle round does, it does so much, much faster due to an increased amount of powder inside the casing. Some say that a .22 magnum is the best of the smaller sized rounds.

ACP – .25 and .32

While I wouldn't want to get shot with anything, these two would be my absolute last pick for a self-defense round (next to a .22lr). The amount of internal damage they inflict is not enough to put my life on the line, should an attacker hopped up on methamphetamine decide that he needs whatever I have in my pocket. Next…

Magnum – .32 H&R and .327

Now we're getting somewhere. Both of these cartridges fire a similar sized projectile (usually somewhere in the neighborhood of 85-95 grains), and can pack a pretty decent punch. Furthermore, they both generally tend to be controllable in terms of recoil, which can only mean that you're able to rapid fire much more accurately. This is great for those times when six .32 H&R Magnum holes in your attacker are better than one from a bigger projectile. These tend to be harder to find on the shelves, however, and may need to be purchased online.

.380 ACP

Chances are good that you've heard of this one, even if you're new to the wonderful world of shooting. The .380 is a small step up from the previous two, and is more widely available. A lot of shooters carry a small pocket pistol chambered in .380 as a backup for their EDC (every day carry). Depending upon the area where you live, a box of these little guys can be quite expensive, and is considered by many to be the absolute smallest self-defense cartridge you'd ever want to carry.

.38 Special

Generally speaking, the ballistics of a .38 special are only slightly better than the .380 ACP, and, as such, should also be considered as the smallest you'd want to carry (in a revolver). However, one thing that .38 Special is great for, is target practice, and getting used to your gun, if it is also chambered in the much more devastating .357 Magnum (more on this in a minute).

However, I do want to say here, that Gun Carrier does not teach people to target practice with one round, and then use another one for self-defense. We believe that you should shoot what you carry, at least some of the time, because two different rounds can feel different, throwing you off in a self-defense situation.

9X19

Otherwise known as 9mm, 9mm NATO, Parabellum, 9mm Luger and 9Mil. This is the absolute most popular self-defense cartridge throughout the world. The US military trusts it, the FBI is switching back to it (or already has), and this is what my own EDC gun is chambered in—and what I tell people to get whenever I talk to someone new to concealed carry.

Projectile technology has come a very long way for the 9mm round. So much so, in fact, that it has very similar ballistics to the bigger rounds, but doesn't come with the steeper price tag. Neither do they produce the same amount of felt recoil. Overall, this is one of the top self-defense cartridges you can buy.

.357 SIG

There is almost nothing this one can't do. I wrote about the .357 Sig in large detail in the past, if you need a good read, check it out. Basically, the .357 Sig takes all of the positives from the .40, the 9mm and the .357 Magnum and combines it into one crazy self-defense cartridge.

Unbeknownst to me, this round hasn't picked up much steam in the gun world. You'd think that, based on what it is capable of, it would be a top seller. But, it isn't and it is slightly more expensive than some of the others on this list. Still, this is an excellent stopper, trusted by many law enforcement agencies.

.40 S&W

This self-defense round is derived from the much longer 10mm round. Overall, this is a great option for self-defense. However, ballistics aren't much better than what the 9mm delivers as the .40 produces more felt-recoil and requires more money being spent at the register. Still, the .40 S&W is a more than capable cartridge, and is what many law enforcement rely on in their service weapons.

10mm

Any newer shooter should think twice before deciding to carry a gun chambered in this hard-hitting caliber. What am I talking here? Back in the 80s, the FBI switched from 9mm to 10mm. Their reasoning was because the NATO round didn't have the ballistics needed to stop the bad guys (back then, the parabellum was insufficient as a man-stopper, unlike today's technologically advanced rounds are).

Well, after they switched, they found that a lot of their agents were inaccurate shooters with the 10mm, and were eventually forced switch over to the 40 S&W, which was a compromise between the two.

.45 ACP

There is a group of gun nuts who swear by the .45 to the point of saying that “if you ain't got a .45, you ain't got ‘shite'.” Well, I'm here to say that the .45 ACP is a great self-defense cartridge. But, it isn't the end all round that many will tell you that it is (no offense, guys).

In all honesty, the ballistics are better than the 9mm and the .40 S&W, but not by much. Again, there are several different things that you need to take into account such as recoil, accuracy, price, etc. However, there are firearms on the market that do an excellent job of minimizing the amount of felt recoil. One such gun is the Springfield Armory XD Mod.2 (that link leads to a gun review I did on that very gun, chambered in .45 ACP).

Conclusion:

Before you decide on any self-defense cartridge or gun, it's always a good idea to shoot as many different self-defense firearms as you can. That way, you've got a good idea of what you're getting into before you ever commit to something.

What's your take on this? Which one of these is your go-to round for self-defense? Let's help all of those who are new to shooting out a bit by telling them what self-defense round you trust you life to, and why.

Thinking about taking your gun hobby to the next level? If so, you may want to check out the American Gun Association to get you there.