Popular Ammo

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Popular Ammo

Caliber charts, load data & real prices

Comparisons measured the same way, price and availability re-checked monthly, and what actually changed in the law. No hype, no sponsored rankings.

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Latest from Popular Ammo

Dimensioned drawing of the 5.7x28mm FN cartridge showing a .312 inch base and rim, a .252 inch case body, a 22 degree shoulder and a .224 inch bullet5.7×28 Ammo: Ballistics, Loads and Barrel LengthSAAMI standardised 5.7x28 in 2024 at 48,500 psi. Published loads, the pistol-to-carbine velocity gap, and what ATF actually classified as armor piercing.Read the article
6.5 Creedmoor vs 308: Same SAAMI Pressure, and the Bullet Does the WorkUnder SAAMI the 6.5 Creedmoor and the .308 Winchester carry the identical 62,000 psi maximum average pressure. The .308 starts with more muzzle energy; the 6.5 recoils less. Match the bullets and the .308 wins at 1,000 yards — on the makers' own published numbers.Read the article
9mm vs 45 ACP: The Two FBI Papers Everyone Cites Disagree With Each OtherBuy the 9mm — more rounds, far less recoil, half the practice cost. But the popular reason why is a misreading of the document everyone cites, and the FBI's own earlier paper says the opposite. We quote both, because they disagree.Read the article
380 vs 9mm: The Comparison Is Rigged Before Anyone Writes a Word9mm wins on the numbers — 1.63 times the pressure ceiling, roughly 1.8 times the energy once barrel length is controlled. But the comparison is measured dishonestly at the source, including by SAAMI and by the ammunition makers, and almost nobody says so.Read the article
300 Blackout vs 556: One of These Will Destroy Your RifleA 300 Blackout round will chamber in a 5.56 barrel and destroy the rifle — that is the one fact in this comparison that is not a preference. Under SAAMI both cartridges carry an identical 55,000 psi ceiling, and SAAMI tests them in barrels eight inches apart.Read the article
223 vs 556: The Pressure Numbers Everyone Quotes Aren’t Measured the Same WayThe pressure figures used to compare .223 Remington and 5.56 NATO come from three standards measuring at three different points, and CIP rates .223 at the exact number cited as proof 5.56 is hotter. The real difference is 0.077 inches of chamber leade — plus what happened when a lab actually measured it.Read the article
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Ammo Charts & Quick Answers

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Caliber comparison chart

Cartridge Bullet Muzzle energy
9mm Luger 115 gr ~360 ft-lb
.45 ACP 230 gr ~370 ft-lb
5.56 NATO 62 gr ~1,300 ft-lb

Bullet sizes, velocity and energy for the common handgun, rifle and rimfire cartridges, side by side.
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Ammo types explained

Type What it is for
FMJ Practice and range
JHP Self-defense
Subsonic Suppressed shooting

FMJ, JHP, soft point, ballistic tip, subsonic and frangible — what each one is built to do, and when it is the wrong choice.
Read the guide →

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Ammo price & supply tracker

Checked Finding
Supply No shortage
Price The real problem
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Live per-round prices, FBI background-check data and the tariff story, re-checked and re-dated every month.
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Caliber comparisons

The published numbers people use to compare cartridges are not measured the same way. Different standards bodies test at different points on the case and in different barrel lengths, which is why two rounds with the same pressure rating can look far apart on a spec sheet. Each comparison below shows the measurement difference first, then what it means at the muzzle.

Comparison The measurement problem
.223 Remington vs 5.56 NATO SAAMI, NATO EPVAT and CIP each measure chamber pressure at a different point on the case, so the published figures are not directly comparable. CIP rates .223 Remington at 62,366 psi — the number often quoted as proof 5.56 runs hotter.
300 Blackout vs 5.56 NATO Identical 55,000 psi SAAMI maximum average pressure. SAAMI tests 300 BLK in a 16-inch barrel and .223 in a 24-inch barrel, which is most of the velocity gap people attribute to the cartridges.
.380 ACP vs 9mm Luger 21,500 psi vs 35,000 psi SAAMI maximum — a 1.63× ratio, not the “double” that gets repeated. SAAMI also tests them in 3.75-inch and 4.0-inch barrels.
9mm Luger vs .45 ACP SAAMI test barrels are 4.0 inches for 9mm and 5.0 inches for .45 ACP. The FBI’s 1989 and 2014 papers reach opposite conclusions on whether bullet diameter matters, and neither acknowledges the other.
6.5 Creedmoor vs .308 Winchester SAAMI sets both at 62,000 psi. CIP does not (4,350 bar vs 4,150 bar), and published velocity data uses different barrel lengths again.

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