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  4. Handgun Ammo Comparison
Jul 15, 2025

Handgun Ammo Comparison

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Andy Kloss

Summer’s arrival means it’s time to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. Consider allotting some summertime days for the handgun range if you’re a shooting enthusiast or a new shooter! Summertime is the perfect time for shooters to get out and shoot their handguns and experiment with new handgun ammo for plinking, competition, or personal defense. Before selecting new ammo, there are several types of handgun ammunition that shooters should get to know. Handgun ammo suitable for training (plinking or competition) and handgun ammo suitable for taking down targets (defense or hunting). It is essential to select the correct handgun ammunition because improper selection can result in wasted dollars or poor performance when it matters most. Regardless of the application, every shooter surely needs a reliable load. Read along to learn more about the types of handgun ammo offered by Remington and what best suits your needs.  

shooter aiming handgun at metal targets outside

Handgun Ammo Comparison: Most Common Handgun Bullets

Bullet Type Best Use Penetration Cost
FMJ (Full Metal Jacket) Training. An FMJ is a standard lead core wrapped in a metal jacket. They are designed to be shot at plinking targets. They can also be used for competition. Suitable for target shooting steel, paper, and anything fun - but safe - to plink. Know your target and what is beyond it; FMJs are at risk of over-penetration on game or man. FMJs are designed for high-volume shooters. They will be budget-friendly, with bulk offerings available.
Hollow Points Personal Defense. Hollow points are the standard for defense applications. They are designed to expand and transfer all their energy immediately upon impact, stopping threats. The hollow point is designed to dump energy on the target and allows the projectile to slow down, ultimately decreasing the chances of over penetration – IE the bullet passing through the intended target. Personal defense ammo will be more expensive than target ammo at the same quantity.

Most Common Handgun Calibers Chart & What They Mean for You

Caliber Recoil Capacity Typical use and loads
9mm The 9mm is known for its manageable recoil and pleasant shooting experience. Expect 10-12 with compact models and 17-19 with full-size models. Double-stack magazines are common.
  • Home defense
  • Target shooting
  • Feasible for concealed carry
380 Auto The 380 Auto can be friendly for new shooters with the right load. The recoil is comparable to a 9mm, but can be snappy due to the small profile. 7-10 rounds are standard for a 380 Auto. Found with both single and double-stack magazines.
  • Home defense
  • Target shooting
  • Concealed Carry
357 Magnum Ensure you have good recoil management techniques. The 357 Mag’s recoil does not go unnoticed. 6 rounds, typically chambered in revolvers.
  • Home defense
  • Handgun hunting
  • Target shooting
45 ACP Expect more recoil with the ol’ 45. However, it is quite manageable with adequate grip strength and stance. 7-10 rounds on average. Single-stack magazines are the most common.
  • Home defense
  • Target shooting
10mm Recoil can be sharp and snappy. Manageable with proper grip, recoil management techniques, and practice. 7-15 rounds, depending on the model of your firearm.
  • Home defense
  • Target shooting

Best Handgun Ammo for Self‑Defense & Everyday Carry  

Terminal performance and reliability are the two most important factors when selecting personal defense ammo. Remington’s best personal defense ammo falls in its Golden Saber Defense product line. Golden Saber’s brass-jacketed hollow points and bonded hollow points expand rapidly on impact, and the nickel-plated casing ensures reliable case extraction. Both these factors optimize terminal performance and reliability! The slight difference is that a bonded bullet's jacket and core are hot-bonded together, resulting in better weight retention after impact. The negative space found on the tip of both bullets causes it to expand upon impact. This expansion delivers ultimate stopping power from handguns, even those with shorter barrels or revolvers. This instantaneous dump of energy on the target also makes hollow points less likely to suffer from overpenetration – i.e., the bullet passing through the intended target.  

person aiming handgun at dusk in front from a warehouse

Handgun Ammo for Range Training & Cost‑Effective Practice 

Heading to the range? You’ll want to shoot full-metal-jacket (FMJ) loads rather than hollow-point loads. An FMJ is simple in design. An FMJ is a lead core wrapped in a jacket of metal, such as brass or copper. This helps keep the cost low for you. Additionally, cartridges loaded with lead round-nose bullets or wadcutters are also excellent choices for target ammunition. Sure, a lead round nose is a good all-around choice, but you pay the expense in time spent scrubbin’ the lead fouling from your handgun. Wadcutters are great for paper as they leave clear, definable holes, making scoring a breeze. As a basic rule of thumb, usually the lighter the grain weight, the less the recoil. For example, with shorter-barreled sub-compact 9MM handguns, you’ll have the lightest recoil experience with a 115-grain and 124-grain projectile. Shooting a full-size 9MM? You can handle a 147 grain. A micro-compact 380? Go with an 88-grain or 95-grain. For premier range ammo, reach for Remington’s UMC Handgun products. UMC handgun ammo is loaded in over a dozen popular calibers and delivers results at a budget price. 

person removing cartridges from a UMC Handgun box

Heavy‑Duty Ammo: Hunting & Outdoor Carry Calibers  

The end goal with hunting and outdoor carry calibers is to quickly (and humanely) bring down a target, sometimes in moments of chaos. No one wants to run into an angry boar when you’re not on a boar hunt. If you find yourself in an environment where these scenarios can arise, you need to pack some big bores! These larger calibers are loaded with heavier, stout bullets, yielding better terminal performance on large, angry threats. Try Remington High Terminal Performance (HTP™) in .357 Magnum, .45 AUTO, or .44 Magnum. HTP will deliver ethical execution. 

hunter loading revolver outside

Handgun Ammo Ballistics Chart & Grain Size Guide  

Every time you switch ammunition, you experience different ballistic performances, even if the new load looks the same as the old. Just a slight variation in grain weight alters the ballistic performance in terms of velocity, momentum, and kinetic energy! It is a game of grains! Looking for ballistic information on Remington handgun cartridges? The back of the yearly Remington catalog has the ballistic performance of every handgun cartridge we offer. Click here for 2025’s catalog.  

Remington handgun ammo in a hand

Pro Tips for New Shooters Choosing Handgun Ammo: Will it work in your Gun? 

Find what works best for you and what you’re most comfortable with when it comes to shooting handguns. This includes selecting calibers that fit you and ammo that matches your scenario. Nothing good ever comes easy, so prepare to spend some time slingin' lead to find what ammo is best for you, especially with a new handgun. Another good rule of thumb for a new defense handgun is to shoot a few hundred rounds of personal defense ammo before carrying it. This period shows if the gun likes or dislikes the selected ammo. If you’re getting jams or misfires, it's time to try different ammo! If you experience this, don’t get bummed, many firearms are picky. With a little bit of experimenting, you’ll discover ammo that solves this pesky problem. Last, always run a couple of magazines through your pistol to ensure dependability and proper feeding! You don’t want to have technical issues in dire situations. To read more about tips for handgun shooting, especially if you’re new to the range, check out this Big Green Blog! 

person firing handgun outside

Conclusion & Remington Expertise  

At the end of the day, it is important to hone your handgun ammo search based on your scenario. Tailoring your search to your scenario is crucial because a load that works well for one situation may not be ideal for another. Remington’s selection of handgun ammo tailors to all scenarios that handgun shooters find themselves in. Loaded in the USA, the quality of Remington Ammunition products will not falter when the time comes. It’s time to get shootin’, folks. We’ll see you out there. Thanks for shooting Big Green. 

shooter at an indoor range aiming handgun at a paper target
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