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If youare in the market for a 9mm pistol (especially your first), rummaging through gun store shelves to find the best one will feel like drinking from a fire hose. There are many excellent, reliable 9mm pistols on the market, and what is best for you may be very different from what is best for the next person. Like buying the best 9mm ammo, your choice will depend on what you will be using it for and your own preferences.
Best Shooting 9mm
For any guide to 9mm pistols, it is impossible to list all the major pistols on the market. In choosing the ten "best" 9mm pistols per category, I am forced to list other excellent guns that I love. That is what the field is about. Choosing the best 9mm pistol for you will take many factors into consideration, including your own personal taste. You may be attracted to a different gun than I am, but each of these picks is a solid starting point for anyone.
Best Full Size 9mm Pistol Handguns
Intended Use The most important thing to consider when buying a 9mm pistol is your intended application. Shopping for a dedicated carry pistol versus a competition rifle will mean a completely different pistol and feature set. First you need to figure out what you want to use the gun for.
Fit and Feel To buy a 9mm pistol that will work well for you, you need some hands-on time. Ideally, if you can shoot a model that a friend has, or test that same model at a hair range, you will have the best feel for how the gun handles for yourself. Take at least a few minutes to carefully handle one in the store, note the features you like or don't like, and which ones you find comfortable. Do not make a purchase until you have seen and handled several different pistols.
Everyone has a different budget, and this 9mm pistol plays a huge role in finding the optimal buy for you. Expensive pistols are nice, and you will usually find a high quality pistol for a high price, but there are some excellent and totally reliable budget friendly pistols on the market.
The Sig Sauer P320 XCompact RXP is comfortable for concealed carry, has excellent ergonomics, and is highly customizable.
The Best 9mm Pistols
The P320 XCompact RXP from Sig is part of a dizzying array of P320 models, but has recently become my favorite carry pistol. The XCompact is similar in size and class to the compact 9mm Glock G19 and comes with 15-round magazines. I have sent many rounds into the wind through both pistols. i like it better.
The P320 series has slightly different grip profiles, and the XCompact has a slimmer X-frame grip (compared to the wider round grips of the M17 / M18). The XCompact is comfortable and points more naturally than the Glock's forward-pitch grip angle. Subtle stipple texturing provides a secure grip without being too abrasive. The beavertail on the back of the grip helps manage recoil and, combined with the slide height, you can choke on the pistol without strapping your hand.
The author's Sig P320 XCompact equipped with a GoGun gas pedal, next to his Glock G19 with modified and dotted frame and XS sights. tyler freel
Like other P320s, it has a removable fire control group, and is compatible with other parts such as advanced Sig P320 triggers and GoGun gas pedals. The RXP comes with the Sig Sauer Romeo 1 Pro reflex sight, but also includes steel night sights that are co-witnessed if the optic fails.
The Most Affordable 9mm Pistols: Top Budget Semi Automatic Handguns
The P320 XCompact RXP is reliable, comfortable to shoot, and very intuitive to me. The many design and function details make this a great pistol. The fire control group is easily removed from the frame for cleaning, and disassembly does not require you to pull and dry the trigger. Another small but noticeable feature is that fully loaded metal magazines lock into the pistol with less effort than some other pistols. Many pistol magazines do not seat completely without a hard tap, but the P320 magazines seat smoothly. Like many other trigger-fire pistols, there is some take-up in the trigger, but it is not bad. The flat trigger shoe is comfortable, easy to control, and the reset is strong and sharp.
There is no "best" list about 9mm pistols without including the Glock. In many ways, Glocks set the standard for muzzle-loading 9mm pistols, and that is especially true for full-size pistols and the G17. It's a simple striker-fired, polymer-framed pistol that comes with 17-round magazines and a reputation for instant reliability.
The G17 is certainly one of the best 9mm pistols of all time – known not only for reliability, but also for simplicity. It has a low-profile slide stop lever and magazine catch button, but no other external controls. The trigger has a safety bar, but the Glock has no other external safety—a trademark-like feature that many muzzle-loading pistols emulate.
The only feature not to like about the factory Glock G17 is its set of polymer sights. They are perfectly functional, but a good set of night sights or high visibility sights like the XS Express Big Dot are a quick and valuable improvement.
Best 9mm Pistols Under $500
Cute, but effective. Many shooters modify their G17s with frame and aftermarket parts such as threaded barrels, magazine extensions and sights readily available. tyler freel
Many Glock shooters customize their pistols with aftermarket parts and upgrades such as steel guide rods, improved barrels, trigger upgrades, and grip sanding and stippling are common. The Gen 5 G17 has a smooth front strap on the grips and interchangeable rear straps to adjust the fit. Although many people choose to modify the G17 platform, it remains one of the most reliable and functional factory 9mm pistols out there.
The G17 is comfortable to shoot, and its full stance makes it easy to control the 9mm's recoil. If you have not shot Glock pistols much, you will find that they have a relatively steep grip angle, and compared to 1911 style pistols, you have to tilt your grip further to get the shot on target. Some shooters call this "pointing downhill" because when you're used to other pistols, it looks like you're pointing the muzzle toward the ground—but it's the angle of your grip that changes.
The Shadow Systems XR920 Elite is a quality, affordable pistol that does what many shooters wish a modified Glock had right out of the box. It's a tricked-out, slimmed-down Glock clone with upgraded parts.
Best Budget Handguns For Personal Protection!
Glock's motto is "perfection," but many shooters still believe the stock model has room for improvement. An entire segment of the 9mm pistol industry has emerged from what were once custom modifications to Glock pistols to make them more shooter-friendly. I swapped out the parts, ground down and dotted the frame, and even ordered a custom slide, so it's great to see clones that have already incorporated those mods into affordable production pistols.
The XR920 Elite is one of those pistols – and it's a good one. You get the classic Glock feel, but off the shelf you get an excellent textured grip, good looking and effective cocking serrations, quality sights, springs and guide rods, a better barrel and it's optic-ready. For less than $900, you'll have a hard time putting it together on your own.
The XR920 Elite is fed from Glock and Glock-pattern 17-round magazines, but the slide and barrel are closer in size to the compact Glock G19. The idea is that you can have a more compact slide and barrel for concealed carry without sacrificing capacity or grip size. It also has a slightly flared magwell for easy reloads and a carefully shaped trigger guard that ensures a tight, close grip on the pistol (something that many custom frame carvers do to improve the fit of OEM Glocks).
This pistol passed our 2022 Outdoor Life gun tests, earning high marks in performance, design and value. The improvement is a solid benefit at the range, and while the lighter weight translates into snappier recoil, the ergonomic improvements to the pistol are a net benefit.
Taurus G3c 9mm 3.26in 12+1
Some clever updates to this classic design make the SA-35 even better, but still true-to-the-original - and at a great price.
The Browning Hi-Power has only been out of production for a few years, but several gunmakers have sparked a renewed interest in this classic 9mm pistol. There have been several "new" remakes of the Hi-Power, or P-35 (which was first issued in 1935), but one of the most notable in recent years has been the Springfield Armory SA-35.
Springfield wanted to build the SA-35 with everything shooters love about the P-35, but also included some clever tweaks (most of which were mods made for the original hi-powers). What they came up with is a simple but sharp looking pistol with great ergonomics and a Parkerized type finish. It stays true to the pistol's high-powered roots and is about half the price of the current FN model, which has the same barrel and takedown mechanism.
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