5 Best Glock Sights (Including Night Sights for Glock 19 and All Models)

What Makes a Sight Good

So what makes a good set of sights? The first thing I would recommend is to only buy sights made from a strong metal like steel or aluminum. Avoid plastic sights, as they are typically not durable.

You are also looking for a front sight that is easy to find when taking aim. The Glock comes with simple painted sights, but modern sights have evolved beyond this.

Today, you can find sights with luminescent paint that aids in target acquisition. Alternatively, many sights use radioactive chemicals housed in durable tubing that give off a natural glow without electrical energy—tritium is most popular for this purpose. Modern fiber-optic sights create a similar effect. Fiber optics glow even in the sunlight, while tritium is specifically designed for nighttime.

Luminescent sights also come in different color variations. The color you choose largely comes down to personal preference. Some people find certain colors do a better job of drawing their attention to the front sight.

You want your sights to have a bright target point that allows for easy target acquisition, day or night. The front sight typically should have a large dot that’s easy to focus in on and provides sufficient contrast from the rear sight.

Speaking of rear sights, make sure that the rear sights’ paint or tritium doesn't distract you from the front sight. The front sight should always naturally capture your eyes’ attention.

The width of the front sight is also important, as it can affect your speed and accuracy dramatically. Be careful not to get sights that are too wide in dimension, as they make long-distance shooting more difficult.

Finally, consider getting ramped sights with smooth edges that won’t snag on your holster or clothing.

Finding the Right Sights for Your Use Case

Before getting to the best Glock sights, there's a bit more to cover.

Everyday Carry and Tactical Accuracy

Sights that are used for your everyday carry firearm are what you want to spend the most money on. Focus on quality and durable construction. For everyday carry, you also want sights that are quick on target and facilitate "tactical accuracy" rather than "bullseye accuracy". Most gunfights happen at 3 yards, last under 3 seconds, and involve 3 rounds. Under these circumstances, making a pin-sized grouping isn’t as important as getting shots off on target as quickly as possible.

Tritium night sights are a good option because they can still be seen clearly at night, when most home invasions take place.

Home Defense

It may sound counterintuitive, but I don’t think you need to break the bank getting sights for a home-defense gun. This is because weapons used strictly for home defense are usually stored in a drawer or a closet and are rarely used. You are looking for something that performs similarly to sights you would use for everyday carry, but durability is less important. Night sights are recommended, but they don’t need to be top of the line, particularly if you have multiple home defense weapons. Likewise, sights that are accurate at long distances aren’t necessary.

Range Sights

Range sights are designed to facilitate pinpoint accuracy for long-range shooting. Fiber-optic sights, in particular, are popular among most competitive shooters these days, but personal preference varies widely.

Sight Setups and Variants

There are several different sight setups for shooters to choose from these days, with some of the most common stylings listed below. Choosing between sight setups largely comes down to your use case and personal preference.

• 3-dot sights - These sight setups feature one dot on the front sight and two on the rear. Night sight variations will often have dots that are centered with tritium inserts. It’s one of the most popular designs among handguns and is good for both short- and long-range shooting.
• 2-dot sights - 2-dot sights feature one big dot on the front sight and one small dot on the rear sight beneath the notch. Well-made 2-dot sights keep the shooter’s attention on the front sight, while the rear sight naturally feeds into the front sight for fast target acquisition.
• I-dot sights - Similar to the 2-dot set, the I-dot features a big dot on the front sight and a single vertical line at the center of the rear sight. The objective is to line up the sights by “dotting the I.” These are best used for close-distance encounters.
• U-shaped rear sight - U-shaped rear sights are most commonly used by competitive shooters. The curved rear sight wraps around a dotted front sight.

Sight Range

• Short-range sights - Short-range sights are specifically designed for close-range encounters—often home defense. They sacrifice pinpoint accuracy in order to help you find your target as quickly as possible. These sights typically have an I-dot setup. It’s very difficult to miss at close range with a good set of short-distance sights.
• Short- to medium-range sights - These sights also work well for home defense, but they’re more versatile than short-distance sights. You will still encounter I-dot setups in this range category, but 3-dot sights with square-notched rear sights are also very common. The Glock stock sights, for example, feature this medium-distance sight setup. The accuracy of stock Glock sights typically extends to about 25 yards.
• Medium- to long-range sights - Medium- to long-distance sights are typically accurate up to about 40 yards. They usually feature either 2-dot, 3-dot, or sight-ledge designs. You can expect higher quality products in this range, but they also tend to be more expensive.
• Long-range sights - These are top-shelf products capable of accurate shooting over 50 yards at night when used by a skilled shooter. These sights typically feature a 2-dot or 3-dot setup and usually make up the most expensive products on the market.

How Much Should I Expect to Spend?

Sights, generally speaking, aren’t very expensive even for high-quality products. They are also built for durability and reliability, which means you won’t need to repeatedly buy new sights. It’s wise to steer clear of cheap metal sights made in places like China, as they tend to be of lower quality and are sometimes a pain in the ass to install. It’s better to focus on middle- to top-shelf products and spend as much as the sights’ use case calls for. As mentioned above, if this is your everyday carry weapon, make the necessary investment. On the other hand, if this is simply a backup home-defense weapon, don’t overextend yourself.