Choosing the Best CCW Caliber For You

Choosing your concealed carry caliber is a personal decision that aligns with your firearm, concealment goals, and ability to accurately shoot your handgun.

It’s an important choice, and it’s easy to get the wrong caliber in the right platform. With that in mind, we are going to dive into how you can choose the best CCW caliber for you.

That “for you” is an integral part of this discussion; there is no perfect CCW caliber for everyone.

In this article, we’re going to break down some myths, discuss external factors that can guide your choice, and have an in-depth discussion of what each common CCW caliber does best.

Keep reading!

The Myth of Stopping Power

Stopping power is probably the biggest myth plaguing concealed carry. It’s a term tied to the idea that certain rounds have certain capabilities by virtue of bullet size or velocity.

While bullet size, weight, and velocity are important, they do not imbue cartridges with special, mystical powers.

Rounds like .45 ACP are often cited for “stopping power,” but in reality, stopping power doesn’t mean anything.

Let’s be honest, handgun cartridges kind of suck. Unlike rifle rounds, there is no secondary wounding effect tied to a handgun cartridge. The only damage they do is what they directly impact. To quote firearms instructor Clint Smith, “They poke holes.”

A bigger bullet does poke a bigger hole, but the difference between bullet sizes is in millimeters (mm). Poked holes aren’t all that great at stopping a determined threat. At that point, you’re hoping for a psychological stop or for blood loss, and neither of those is the optimum situation.

Pistol cartridges need to penetrate deeply enough to cause a central nervous system shutdown. If you are not hitting anything vital, the size of your bullet doesn’t matter.

A .45 ACP that misses the vitals isn’t going to be any more effective than a 9mm that misses the vitals.

Proper shot placement and penetration are the keys to stopping a threat. 9mm, .40 S&W, .45 ACP, can penetrate deep enough to hit the vitals and stop a threat, but so can .22 LR.

So, how much penetration is needed?

Industry standard is at least 12 inches through properly calibrated ballistic gel. We tend to want less than 18 inches to prevent over-penetration.

It’s important to remember that ballistic gel is not meant to be a one-to-one representation of the human body; instead, it’s a standardized testing material that delivers uniform and measurable results.

It comes down to one simple fact…caliber differences are minimal if minimum penetration is met.

A secondary effect of modern pistol cartridges is expansion.

Jacketed hollow points (JHPs) expand in soft targets. This creates a bigger hole, which is great, but it isn’t necessary to stop a threat.

The main benefit of JHPs is their ability to rapidly slow a projectile and prevent over-penetration of a target. This keeps the projectile from striking an innocent person or damaging property.

Remember, we want our rounds to stop inside the threat.

The Trade-Off Triangle

When choosing a handgun cartridge, you have to consider the trade-off triangle.

The first corner is terminal performance, which prioritizes penetration and expansion.

A lot of rounds penetrate to the minimum standard, but some can penetrate deeper than the standard. This can be valuable in odd situations where the round may strike another part of the body before entering the torso.

In the famed 1986 Miami Shootout, a round penetrated through one of the bad guy’s arms and stopped just short of the heart. Beating the minimum can be invaluable.

The second corner of the trade-off triangle is shootability. This comes down to recoil management and your ability to make follow-up shots.

Handguns suck for stopping threats compared to rifles, so you may likely need more than one shot to stop the threat. Carrying a snub-nose S&W 500 is great…until you have to make a follow-up shot.

Lastly, we get into the realm of capacity – the number of rounds your firearm can hold. Ask yourself how much you value capacity. Is having extra ammunition something you want, or would you settle for fewer rounds that perform at a higher level?

Larger guns often hold more ammo but are more difficult to conceal.

Breaking Down Concealed Carry Calibers

Let’s dig into some of the more popular concealed carry cartridges.

I haven’t included every cartridge on the market and left off calibers that don’t meet penetration standards (like .22 Short).

I also didn’t include cartridges with limited availability, like .44 Special, .50 AE, and .500 S&W Magnum. I kept everything in the realm of cartridges designed for self-defense that are readily available on the market.

We’ll start with the little guys and work our way up!

.22 LR

If you are searching for a tiny pistol with extremely low recoil, then .22 LR is the way to go. Guns like the Ruger LCP II are capacity-efficient and capable of holding 10 rounds, and pocket-sized J-frames can hold up to 8 rounds of .22 LR.

The .22 LR can meet penetration standards when you use proper, purpose-built ammo, like Federal Punch.

You are less likely to achieve adequate penetration with hollow-point or soft-lead rounds. It’s not the optimal choice, but it fills a particular niche.

Cheap ammo allows for a lot of training. You can get very competent with a .22 LR without investing a ton in ammunition.

The biggest downside is rimfire ignition; it tends to be less reliable than centerfire cartridges.

You also have to be picky about ammo and search out cartridges that can meet penetration standards and reliably cycle a semi-auto pistol.

.22 WMR

If you want low recoil with more reliable penetration, then the .22 WMR or .22 Magnum is an excellent option.

The recoil increase is minimal, but most .22 Magnum rounds will reach penetration standards even from short barrels.

It’s tough to find concealed carry-sized semi-autos in .22 WMR, but plenty of revolvers exist. In a J-frame format,capacity reaches six to seven rounds. The Ruger LCR, for example, is an excellent choice for a defensive .22 Magnum.

Like the .22 LR, you have to deal with rimfire reliability. The cartridge is also considerably louder than the .22 LR, and you have fewer options for handguns overall.

.32 ACP

Bias alert: I love the .32 ACP.

With heavy 71 to 73 grain FMJs, you get excellent penetration that easily meets the standard from super short pocket pistol barrels.

Pair that with centerfire reliability, and you have a reliably igniting, low-recoil round that handles exceptionally well in small guns.

In larger guns like the new Beretta Cheetah 80X, the .32 ACP feels like a rimfire round in terms of reliability. Larger guns with longer barrels can even get expansion from JHPs.

The .32 ACP can be pricey, and there modern firearms availability is limited in this cartridge. KelTec, Seecamp, and Beretta are the most popular options these days.

Additionally, you may experience reliability issues with JHPs due to the .32 ACP’s semi-rimmed design. The .32 ACP is sensitive to rimlock, and this occurs when the cartridges don’t meet strict overall length requirements.

.32 H&R Magnum

Thanks to Smith & Wesson and Ruger, the .32 H&R Magnum is seeing a revival.

The .32 H&R Magnum is an excellent low-recoil cartridge for snub-nose revolvers. It easily meets penetration standards with less recoil than the .38 Special. Less recoil means fast follow-up shots without penetration concerns.

This cartridge even allows you to fit one extra round for six shots in a J-Frame. Shooting .32 H&R Magnum enables you to shoot .32 S&W Long and .32 S&W.

The downside is ammo availability and price. It’s expensive, but the price is slowly lowering, especially with Federal adding it to the American Eagle lineup.

Guns are also more difficult to obtain, but anything that shoots .327 Federal Magnum can also shoot .32 H&R Magnum.

.327 Federal Magnum

.327 Federal Magnum is a small-caliber, fast-moving cartridge that offers terminal performance similar to that of a mid-range .357 Magnum.

Penetration and expansion are both potent and capable, even from short barrels.

The .327 Federal Magnum can give you one additional round in a J-frame revolver and can fire .32 H&R Mag, .32 S&W Long, and .32 S&W.

This cartridge is niche and somewhat expensive, but there are more than a few revolver options for it. The downside is recoil, which exceeds that of standard .38 Special and feels like something a .38 Special +P round.

From short-barreled guns, you’ll experience a fair bit of muzzle flash and concussion. The .327 Federal Magnum tends to work brilliantly in a revolver with a 3-inch barrel.

.380 ACP

.380 ACP is another John Browning invention that has become extremely popular in micro-sized pocket pistols.

From short barrels, it penetrates well with FMJs. Some specialized JHPs can even expand from short barrels.

The .380 ACP is one of the most common micro-gun rounds, and ammo is widely available.

With modern guns like the Ruger LCP MAX and Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 2.0, capacity has been increased to 10 to 13 rounds of ammunition in tiny platforms.

In larger guns, like the Ruger Security-380 and Sig Sauer P365-380, the cartridge offers a low-recoil alternative to the 9mm with modern capacity and features. In smaller guns, like the original Ruger LCP, it tends to be quite snappy and unpleasant to shoot.

The .380 ACP often works best as a low-recoil alternative to 9mm in compact handguns.

9mm Parabellum

The 9mm is the most popular pistol round in the United States. I

It’s often considered the just-right cartridge because it offers excellent penetration and expansion with a wide variety of load types.

It also wins the award for the most affordable centerfire pistol round on the market.

With 9mm, you get excellent capacity, even in small guns like the Sig Sauer P365. Recoil is mild in most handguns and only becomes excessive in micro-sized guns like the Diamondback DB 9.

You have a ton of options for firearms, including revolvers, so it’s often the most plug-and-play option for shooters.

.38 Special

The .38 Special is a classic revolver round that’s been around for over a century.

It’s insanely common and offers adequate penetration as long as you match the round to the barrel length.

Snub-nose .38 Specials tend to work best with wadcutter rounds that would be considered FMJs. As you get into 3-inch barrels and beyond, the .38 Special can offer excellent penetration and expansion, especially with modern +P rounds.

Cartridge commonality means ammo is easy to find in a variety of loadings. In smaller frame guns, you are only getting five rounds, with the occasional outlier giving you six.

.38 Special has also crept up in price fairly quickly. Recoil can be stout, especially from a snub-nose revolver.

In guns with barrels longer than 3 inches and in medium-frame revolvers, the cartridge can be quite pleasant.

.357 Magnum

The .357 Magnum was created during the Dust Bowl days of motorized bandits.

Cops needed cartridges that could penetrate the vehicles of the era. It’s remained a popular round due to its power and versatility.

.357 Magnum easily meets the penetration standard and provides excellent expansion.

In those weird situations where you may need a little extra penetration, the .357 Magnum is a great choice.

Need to protect yourself from both two-legged predators and four-legged predators? The .357 Magnum is an excellent choice. Continued popularity ensures there is plenty of ammo on the shelves with a variety of projectile types and weights. Ammo price is high, so that can be a turn-off for some shooters.

The downside is recoil. It can be excessive, especially from airweight and snub-nose revolvers.

I don’t see many benefits to a .357 Magnum snub-nose revolver, but for larger guns, it’s a capable and competent choice. Keep in mind, it still has more recoil than the .38 Special. However, it can fire .38 Special.

.40 S&W

The .40 S&W is a high-pressure cartridge that dominated the law enforcement market a decade ago. It’s faded from popularity but is still an excellent cartridge for self-defense.

This cartridge offers outstanding penetration and works well in weird situations where 12 inches of penetration isn’t enough. Expansion is brilliant, and you don’t lose velocity and penetration when using JHPs.

It’s probably one of the best combat pistol cartridges on the market. Ammo tends to be more expensive than 9mm, but it is still priced affordably.

The .40 S&W design means it pairs with guns that are the same size as 9mm pistols with minimal loss in capacity. New guns are becoming less common, but there are tons of affordable police trade-ins all over the used market.

In full-sized guns, it’s considered a little snappy, but it gets worse as the gun shrinks. Anything smaller than a Glock 23 can be downright unpleasant and difficult to control without adequate training and practice.

10mm Auto

The 10mm Auto was designed as a fighting pistol cartridge and served briefly with the FBI.

This cartridge offers high velocity with excellent penetration and expansion. It can often exceed the 18-inch penetration maximum.

It’s a versatile round that can be used for self-defense is even powerful enough to kill a bear. It’s a great cartridge for shooters who need to defend against a wide range of threats.

Shooters need to match the load to the shooting goal, though.

Using bear loads for defense against two-legged threats can lead to over-penetration. Recoil is snappy out of anything smaller than a full-sized pistol.

Ammo tends to be expensive with a limited selection of firearms.

.45 ACP

.45 ACP has proven itself a capable man-stopper, offering excellent penetration and outstanding expansion.

This big, slow bullet digs deep without the snappy recoil of a high-pressure cartridge. The .45 ACP round remains popular, likely second to the 9mm.

It’s also the chosen round for the 1911 platform.

Ammo is fairly common, with some versatile loads offering extremely effective penetration and expansion without snappy recoil.

The downside is cost. .45 ACP FMJs often reach 50 cents a round. That makes training tough. (I hear a cash register noise with every shot fired.)

The .45 ACP also has limited compact options. Glock and some 1911 manufacturers offer a handful of compact options, but it’s most popular in full-size.

Final Thoughts

Caliber arguments used to rage across the internet like a battle out of Lord of the Rings. These days, those have mostly quieted down with the acceptance of modern, evidence-based ballistics.

Most people accept that certain calibers do certain things fairly well, and the multitude of options allows us to have a variety of firearms. There’s something for everyone.

I based this list on extensive research and experience, but I’m still just one person. Did I get it wrong? Did I forget your pet cartridge? Let me know in the comments below. To get into the nitty-gritty of more rounds, check out our Guide to Handgun Calibers.