Buying your first handgun – or simply establishing what is “the best” for a first-time gun buyer – might be intimidating if you’ve never handled a firearm before (even at a shooting range). The variety of gun types, manufacturers, and calibers – as well as simple questions like pistol versus revolver vs. semi-auto – can be overwhelming. Then, of course, there are all the extras, so you may find yourself choosing between the top upgrades for walther ppq, or whichever gun you go for, to customize your gun to really get the most out of your shooting experience. Many newcomers choose a handgun primarily on appearance or movie familiarity rather than considering what would be the most effective firearm for a first-time gun owner.
Here are some tips from our firearm review website; we’ll go over a few key gun criteria in this guide, such as caliber, ammo, size, ergonomics, pricing, and safety features, so you’ll know all you need to know when it comes to buying your first gun.
How to Choose a Beginner Handgun?
Fit
Fit is the most critical factor to consider while selecting the finest pistol. We recommend obtaining a “full size” pistol, which has barrels that are close to 5 inches in length.
Because there is greater bulk to absorb recoil, a wider surface to grip, and a longer sight radius from the front sight to the rear sight, shooting a full-sized pistol is easier.
Safety
We advise against using an external safeguard here. We feel that the mind is the best safety and that you may forget to disengage the safety in the excitement of the moment during a self-defense crisis.
This eliminates a few options, including the famous 1911, which we believe is too difficult and demanding for a starting shooter.
In the same vein, when thinking about safety, you also want to make sure that you choose a model of gun that is easy to learn how to handle and improve your skills with. It’s not worth, for example, investing in a model that is not legal in your state and you have to travel hours to use, as this makes it useless unless you are willing to make the journey often. Instead, it’s probably better to opt for a model that can be used for Dry-Fire Laser Training, so that you can improve your shot, speed, and accuracy in your own home. Safety is one of the crucial considerations in choosing a new gun.
Sights
Get the night vision because most self-defense engagements take place in dimly light environments.
Each of our suggested handguns generally has a night sight model. You may also buy aftermarket sights and have them installed by a gunsmith.
Caliber
For your first handgun, we recommend a 9mm Luger. When compared to other bigger calibers, 9mm bullets are readily available and affordable to shoot, which helps keep the expense of practice and training down.
Plus, because it has a smaller cartridge size than a.45 ACP, it has less recoil and magazines with significantly larger cartridge capacity (15 or more rounds), yet the 9MM still provides enough self-defense capabilities and is compact enough to operate well in concealed carry handguns.
Action
For beginners for home protection, we recommend a striker-fired pistol since the trigger pull is practically the same every time (at least when compared to a double-action).
The back of the slide is flat, and there is no visible hammer, which is a simple method to detect if a handgun is a striker. Because you’re cocking back the hammer on a double-action handgun like the Beretta 92FS, the initial shot is hefty.
Finest Firearm for Beginners
S&W M&P 2.0
The Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 handgun, the most recent addition to the M&P (for “Military & Police”) polymer pistol series, is designed for a wide range of users, including personal, concealed carry, sports, and professional gun usage.
The M&P 2.0 and all of its versions are favorites of ours, appearing on our lists of the best overall 9mm handguns, concealed carry pistol recommendations, and subcompact 9mm pistols. It’s a fantastic pistol — and not only for seasoned shooters — since it’s simple to use, feels comfortable in hand, has a firm grip that gives first-time users confidence, has Smith & Wesson’s smooth trigger pull, and has a good magazine capacity of 17+1.
Sig Sauer P320
The Sig P320 pistol, which is sometimes likened to the classic Glock 19, is a highly useable handgun with top-notch craftsmanship, superb stock trigger, pleasant grip ergonomics, and astonishing mag capacity — all in a lightweight, readily customizable package.
The Sig Sauer P320 also shoots the common 9MM bullet, which is perfect for new shooters and amateurs, making it a very simple pistol to use. Because it’s a Sig Sauer, it’s a little more pricey, but it’s an excellent beginner pistol for most people.
We looked at a variety of 9mm pistols and believe the Sig Sauer P320 is an excellent choice for semi-automatic, striker-fired handguns. It’s the ideal 9mm pistol for both expert and novice shooters. It’s a battle-tested, polymer-framed pistol with adjustable features that should suit a wide range of applications and is priced extremely reasonable when compared to pistols with similar features.
Glock 43
The G3 Glock 43 is a tiny 9MM striker-fired handgun with a polymer frame that is lightweight, has moderate recoil, is dependable, and may be used as a nightstand safe or hidden carry weapon. Although this tiny Glock entrance into the smaller, single-stack 9mm handgun market lagged behind other brands, the value of this specific Austrian gun bundle was undeniably high.
Glock handguns are popular for a reason, and the fact that the 43 model combines reliability in a more economical design, as well as features that Glock devotees enjoy (such as the integrated trigger safety and smooth trigger pull), makes it a top choice for individuals looking to for a 9MM Glock pistol.
The Glock 43 fits comfortably in any sized hand at just over a single inch in width (technically 1.06 inches) – though that small footprint comes with a lower overall capacity with only six rounds in the magazine and a smaller grip than other Glocks — a shortcoming that the Glock 43X attempts to address by combining the G43’s smaller frame dimensions with the Glock 19’s grip.
Springfield XD-S
The XD-E 9mm handgun from Springfield Armory is ideal for beginners because of its full-size frame and melonite barrel finish, which protects it from damage and corrosion while learning how to store and care for a firearm. The Springfield XD Mod 2 pistol has a double-action and/or single-action system, so you may choose between the two depending on whether you want a lighter trigger pull or the safer double-action option.
With a 1-inch broad frame that makes it simpler to operate for smaller hands and a low-effort slide that smooths down the action and makes it easier on the shooter, the XD Mod 2 is a great novice pistol on all fronts.
