Like any good gun debate, it will be impossible to please everyone with our list of the best home defense pistols. At the end of the day, the weapon for you is always the one with which you feel most comfortable. If you train with a Colt six shooter revolver and that's what you want by your side when the SHTF, so be it.
As for the masses when it comes to home defense, we're going to stick with the 9mm family. We know there is stuff out there with more power, but at the end of the day the 9mm is easier to shoot and because it might be your wife or teenage daughter holding down the fort, that matters.
Key Features to Consider in a Home Defense Handgun Top 5 Best Handguns for Home Defense Factors Beyond the Gun Ammunition Choices for Home Defense Safe and Accessible Storage Options FAQs Section: People Also Ask Table of Contents
Key Features to Consider in a Home Defense Handgun
Even a beginner can pick up a 9mm pistol and quickly understand how to put it to work. Remember, you are using this gun for home defense. That means the barbarians have already made the breach and you will find yourself pumped full of adrenaline. Shooting accurately after the first shot is paramount.
This means the caliber selection along with the handgun size and weight will affect your ability to put rounds 2, 3, 4 and beyond center mass. You're going to get a different recoil when firing a .40 Smith & Wesson or a .45 ACP.
Accuracy is more important than stopping power. For example, here at MIRA Safety we sell some top notch Level 4 Body Armor that will hold up against some of the highest-caliber armor-piercing rounds. If your intruder is wearing our armor, sorry about that first of all, but nothing you send his way will stop him if you aim for the body. You must aim for an exposed part of the body and to hit that you must be accurate.
There is still plenty of room for personal preference when it comes to the type of 9mm ammunition you choose. Jacketed Hollow Points (JHP) work great. However, for our money and our home, the 9mm handgun makes the most sense. With that in mind, we're going to run through our top 5 options for the 9mm firearm.
Source: MIRA Safety
Top 5 Best Handguns for Home Defense
Remember, we're talking about a home defense gun here. We're not saying this is the best option for your everyday conceal carry. We just want a firearm that anyone in the family can pick up and use if needed. We're not saying you should hand your Glock 17 to your toddler and put him on point. However, if you have trained your family well and they are responsible, even minors need to know how to shoot in a home defense scenario.
5. Beretta 92X 9mm
The Beretta 92X is a fine pistol and it makes the list for its accuracy and reliability. However, it is relatively heavy and large for a pistol and that makes it a less than ideal option for EDC. Thankfully, we're talking about home defense situations.
This means you can add the Beretta to your collection of firearms and keep this one at the ready next to your bed at night. Lock up appropriately if you have the kiddos around.
This gun is ideal for home defense if you feel empowered by a full size firearm in your hands. Choosing a handgun should always take into consideration what makes you feel the most comfortable in the moment you need it most. For that reason alone, we chose to add the Beretta 92X to the mix.
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4. SIG Sauer P320
What we like about the SIG Sauer P320 is its modular design and proven performance. SIG Sauer also makes it remarkably easy to customize the weapon and that means you can choose the best gun for home defense according to your own preference.
Specifically we like the SIG P320 XCompact because you can stage the firearm just about anywhere in your home. It's got a decent price tag to it and so you perhaps can't buy one for every room in your house, but it's a firearm that will show up when you need it most.
It feels great in your hands and again, for the wife or responsible children having to hold down the fort when you are gone, the size is not going to overwhelm them. The P320 also makes a great EDC and so you can put it to work on a daily basis.
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3. Smith and Wesson M&P 2.0
We like this firearm for home defense because of its accuracy and reliability. We wouldn't put it at the top of our list, but sitting at number 3 right in the middle seems like an appropriate spot. It's not the best and not the worst pistol on the market.
It has excellent ergonomics that makes the gun feel great in your hand and you'll have a firm grip when drawing down on your target. It's an excellent platform for home defense and again, if you want it to be your everyday concealed carry pistol, it lives up to that calling as well.
Source: ableammo.com
2. Springfield XD-S Mod 2
This is perhaps one of the best subcompact 9mm pistols on the market and its small size makes it ideal for staging at various locations throughout your home. It is highly concealable and that ideal for homeowners who want the gun at the ready, but not obvious to others.
You have to remember that a home invasion can take place within seconds. Running back to your bedroom may not be an option. The compact handgun makes it easier for those with small hands to shoot as well. Selecting a handgun for the defense of your home has to take into account every shooter in the household.
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1. Glock 19 Pistol
Like many firearm enthusiasts, we love the Glock brand as a whole and the Glock 19 reigns supreme in our minds. The Glock 19 is a versatile firearm that is highly reliable and widely used in law enforcement, military circles, and security personnel. When in doubt, do what the pros do.
Despite its professional use, it also might be the best handgun for beginners. It has a high capacity to allow for multiple shots and the low recoil means you have a better shot at hitting your target in a defense situation.
Naysayers will point out that other firearms have more stopping power, but for home defense purposes you are not trying to send rounds through multiple layers of drywall into your kid's bedroom. This Glock is an excellent option and we'd argue the best for beginners and home defense.
Source: ableammo.com
What About a Revolver?
Now that we've given you our list, let's just address the revolver question very quickly. We like revolvers. They are sexy classic hand guns that will still inflict a lot of pain on the bad guys. As we said at the start of the article, if a revolver is what you feel most comfortable with, then we say run with it. Don't let us or any other "guru" on the internet talk you out of what makes you feel the most confident in a fight.
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Factors Beyond the Gun
Now that we have most certainly angered various gun enthusiasts with the inclusion or lack thereof for their favorite handguns, let's talk about what really matters. Any of the firearms we shared above will do an amazing job defending your home as will 100's of options we didn't include. That matters more than the gun is the skill of the operator.
Importance of Regular Training
We say it often here that most people believe that they will rise to the occasion when some home invader kicks in their door. You will not rise to the occasion. Rather, you will fall to the highest level of your training and preparation.
Training for Muscle Memory and Accuracy Under Stress
It's best to train like you intend to fight and for this reason we think that ultimately, the best pistol is the one you train with on a regular basis. If your favorite home defense firearm didn't make our list, but you know it like the back of your hand, that's your answer.
Also, please don't go adding red dots, lights, and other gadgets if you have no intention to train with them. You want muscle memory to be your friend and not your enemy when the door is kicked in. Train, repeat, train more, repeat and so on until picking up the firearm feels 100% natural.
You cannot help the stress, fear, or panic that will take hold of you in that moment. That's your amygdala in your brain firing up the fight or flight response. The repetition of the training is what will see through in that moment.
Ammunition Choices for Home Defense
You can also enhance your ability to protect your family by choosing the right ammunition for the right scenario. A lot of this debate often revolves around subsonic ammunition. With subsonic ammunition, you lose a little power but you also lose that ringing sound in your ears which helps keep your head in the fight. However, that is really just a matter of preference and as long as you train with the ammunition with which you intend to fight, you should be good to go. The most common ammunition choice to be made is between Jacketed Hollow Point (JHP) and Full Metal Jacket (FMJ)
Hollow Point vs. Full Metal Jacket
FMJ ammunition is typically cheaper than JHP and that makes it a great option for the range. However, it's not ideal for residential defense. FMJ is designed to penetrate and pass through the target which makes overpenetration in a home a problem. It also causes less damage to the body that it strikes.
JHP, on the other hand, is designed to put hurt on any bad guy coming your way. The round expands up hitting its target which causes more damage to flesh. It also reduces the chance of overpenetration that might send a round into your kids bedroom as they sleep.
For our money and when our family's life is on the line, we're going to JHP ten times out of ten. The best 9mm pistols packing JHP rounds will get the job done when it matters most. The ammunition choice may very well be more important than the firearm you select.
Safe and Accessible Storage Options
Finally, let's cover the conundrum facing every gun owning parent across this great nation. Namely, now to keep a firearm accessible for the surprise invasion while not letting your children have access to them. It is not an easy question to answer.
With increased readiness of a firearm you will see increased risk of a child gaining access. Every parent has to make the decision that is right for their family. Whatever you decide, the education of your child's mind is the best safety option around.
Even if you lock your guns safely, they need to understand the danger firearms pose and how to handle them properly. Do they know to treat every gun as if it were loaded? Do they know to keep their finger straight and off the trigger until they intend to fire?
As your children get older, you then have to weigh at what point do you want a gun accessible to them in case an intruder comes when they are alone. Again, know your kids and their ability to be responsible around firearms.
You have to choose the best option for your family and if that is to give them access to a firearm defense weapon, don't make that decision lightly. That's our take on the best options. It's less about the weapon and more about the training of the shooter. Whether that is an adult or responsible minor, training and preparation is key.
