Best .40 S&W Ammo for Self-Defense, Concealed Carry, and Range Practice

In this guide, we will be giving you our recommendations for the best .40 S&W ammo for both defensive shooting/concealed carry and range practice.

Use these links to jump ahead to a given section:

• Best .40 S&W Defense Ammo
• Best Cheap Bulk .40 S&W Ammo for Range Practice

.40 S&W Background

.40 S&W is one of the newest handgun calibers on the market. It was first designed in 1990 at the request of the FBI, who was concerned at the time that 9mm might be underpowered. In the decades following its release, .40 S&W achieved moderate adoption among civilians, both for concealed carry and recreational use. However, it has never gained the same sort of popularity as 9mm or .45 ACP.

The .40 S&W cartridge’s build is similar to the 10mm, and it performs a lot like 9mm in terms of accuracy, drift, and drop. Its build, however, gives it an energy advantage over not just 9mm, but even .45 ACP. The .40 S&W cartridge’s notably high performance in lab testing during the 1990s earned it the status among experts at the time as the “ideal cartridge for personal defense and law enforcement.” Law enforcement agencies across the US have since returned to using mostly 9mm, but for those looking for a little more power without wanting to step all the way up to 10mm, .40 S&W is a great choice.

Simple Buyers Guide

Before we get started, let’s briefly take a look at some factors to consider when trying to find the best ammunition.

Difference Between Defense Ammunition and Range Ammunition

Considering your life may depend on it, we believe you should purchase the highest-quality self-defense ammunition you possibly can. Price should be a secondary concern.

For those on a tight budget, bear in mind that your self-defense ammo will be used sparingly. You will only practice with it occasionally, just to re-familiarize yourself with it and to ensure that it’s functioning properly with your firearm.

There are two major categories of ammunition: hollow point and full metal jacket (FMJ):

• Hollow-point bullets expand and transfer more energy into your target, meaning they will have greater stopping power. These are the types of bullets you will want to purchase for self-defense.
• FMJs are cheap and should be bought in bulk for practice at the range.

Hollow Point Bullet Expanded on Impact

Lucky Gunner Ballistics Gel Testing

Lucky Gunner conducts extensive ballistics gel testing on the hollow-point ammunition they carry on their online store. As we've discussed in our Lucky Gunner review, we're also huge fans of their online store and recommend them for purchasing ammo online.

Testing of the .40 S&W ammo listed below was conducted by firing 5 rounds of each type of ammunition using a Glock 27 from 10 feet away through four layers of fabric to simulate heavy clothing. Data were then collected on several metrics, the most important of which are penetration depth and bullet diameter.

Penetration Depth - According to the FBI, a bullet’s optimal penetration depth is somewhere between 12 and 18 inches. Any less than this and the bullet may not reach the vital organs of an attacker; any more and your shots will run the risk of over-penetration, potentially harming bystanders located behind the target. In general, I would recommend penetration closer to 18 inches rather than 12, just so you can be confident your bullets are packing enough stopping power.

Bullet Expanded Diameter - Bullet expanded diameter or bullet expansion, refers to the size of the bullet after impact. Unlike FMJs, hollow-point bullets expand and sometimes fracture on contact with the target. This is designed to increase a bullet’s overall stopping power by transferring more of the bullet's energy into its target. Ideally, you want the highest amount of expansion possible from your ammunition, while still being sure that it falls somewhere between the 12- to 18-inch penetration depth sweet spot.

What Grain Should I Buy?

When shopping for ammunition, you will often come across the term ‘grain’. A grain is a unit of measurement that refers to a projectile’s mass or weight. Generally speaking, .40 S&W ammo is ideally weighted somewhere between 165 to 180 grain. It’s wise to purchase range ammunition with the same grain as your defense ammunition so that your practice rounds feel and behave similarly to the ammo you may rely upon in a real-world self-defense scenario.

.40 S&W Ammo Availability

While not always an issue, it should be noted that .40 S&W is less widely available than 9mm or .45 ACP. For this reason, you may have a harder time finding top-shelf, self-defense-quality ammo in stock among retailers. With this in mind, we've included multiple retailer options.

We’re now ready to get to our recommendations, beginning with the best .40 S&W defensive ammo.

The Best .40 S&W Ammo for Self-Defense and Concealed Carry

Remington Ultimate Defense - .40 S&W - 180 Grain BJHP

Remington’s .40 S&W Ultimate Defense cartridges are among the highest-performing products currently on the market. These brass-jacketed hollow points have deep penetration and excellent expansion. It can be difficult to find a retailer that has Remington Ultimate Defense rounds in stock, but if you can track down a case, don’t sleep on the opportunity to buy.

• Average Penetration - 15.9”
• Average Expanded Diameter - .797”
• Average Bullet Velocity - 976 fps