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I Tested And Ranked The Best BB Guns On Amazon In 2024

Updated: Jan 27

If you need a reliable BB pistol for target shooting, pest control, backyard plinking or self-defense, I’m here to help you make the best choice on your next purchase.

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FYI, Prices and ratings are accurate as of time of writing.


1. Glock 17 - Blowback .177 BB Gun


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Highlight: An exact Glock replica.

Helpful review: Be careful with this one in public. Unless I get this in my fingers, I can't tell if it's a real one or not from across the room. For my needs, it's perfect. It is ideal for that training when I teach armed guard employees who have not practiced draw and fire on the range.
Glock made this BB gun for use as a trainer, and they hit the bullseye (yes, pun intended). This is not a target gun like other pistol air guns but a training gun. The accuracy of this air gun is good enough to hit a beer can every time from about ten feet away, probably further, but I was not too worried about it.
The materials the air pistol is made from are the same as those used to make the Glock frame. The slide will work with blowback action, so every part of this replica works excellently for training. The CO2 cartridge is held in the handle and is pushed into place when screwing down the cap. I've owned several BB guns that look real, but this one is really something else. It's an exact Glock replica!
Put a drop of Prolix on the tip of the CO2 cartridge to keep the seal in good shape. Also, a drop or two should be placed on the moving parts to ensure the air gun stays in excellent working order. The materials this pistol is made from do not scratch easily; if it does and someone cannot tolerate the scratches, I fix them with a black Sharpie. If the scratch is more like a gouge, I have used a torch to heat a screwdriver tip and then use it to melt the materials back together again.

Get it from Amazon now: $169.99 & FREE Returns

 

2. Crosman SNR357 - Snub Nose .177 Revolver


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Highlight: Full metal body, feel like the real thing.

Helpful review: I have some photography models that I use for advertisements who live in very unfriendly gun states and jurisdictions. I can send replica air guns directly to them to put in holsters and create photography and videos.
The Crosman SNR357 looks close enough to the real deal to work for photography work, and it is an all-metal frame gun, so it will not have the shiny plastic look. The build quality of this BB gun is more outstanding than I expected, and I was happily surprised. The grips are made from polymer and look close to the grip or handle of a Glock-style frame.
The calendar will open from a Smith and Wesson looking and operating calendar release. The release is even held in place with a screw, just like the Smith. The calendar opens fully, and the ammo is held within some brass bullet-looking things. The bullets, for lack of a better word, load and extract just like the real thing. The CO2 is pushed into the bullet, and the BB is sent down range. This is pretty dang cool.
I have the talent to draw and fire the air gun in the house into safe and effective bullet traps that will allow the BBs to be reused, so ammo is not a real cost factor. What this does by having such a realistic replication of the firearm is that they have been trained to properly handle it, so when it comes to the photoshoot or video shooting days, we can get right to work.
This revolver replica looks and feels like the real thing in a holster, where most of our photography happens. The gun functions very similarly to the real thing, and as a BB gun, it is incredible at short range. I don't think this will be a hunting gun, for when the world ends, zombies take over, and we all have to shoot squirrels for food. If this is the only way someone has to kill food, they will be starving for a long time.

Get it from Amazon now: $100.99 & FREE Returns

 

3. Beretta M92 A1 - Full-Auto .177 BB Pistol


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Highlight: All metal construction, and it goes full auto.

Helpful review: A complete auto air pistol, what could be better? I like this offering more than the rest because it's fun to blast away in full auto, especially if I can get a bunch of pigeons on the grass eating breadcrumbs. The tough love is working to help the pigeons find a new place to live, and my patio furniture is much better off with them leaving my neighborhood.
The underlug rail will fit a laser sight or a flashlight for training. The laser is needed for the full-auto crazy that comes from the back of my mind and into my trigger finger. For training, this gun is right on the money. I use this pistol at the shop to help customers understand how guns fit and feel. The folks back east who need air guns to do some of the modeling work love this gun, especially the folks who were in the military; this gun feels right at home to them.
The accuracy of this air pistol is right on and suitable up to about 25 feet. It is right on the money to shoot beer cans; I have not gone through the hassle of setting up a bullseye target and dragging the table and the bench vise out to check the bullseye ability. This is an air pistol; I call it accurate if it hammers a beer can every time I shoot it from across the yard. No wonder it's considered the best BB gun for home defense by some reviewers. I'm sure there are better that cost twice as much, but for the money, this is one hell of a BB gun pistol.
This air gun must be lubricated a lot. The Prolix dabs onto the CO2 seal and some drops on the slide. Make sure this gun works all the time and can go full auto when the crazy reaches the trigger finger. As I said before, this air gun is entirely metal construction and is heavy in a holster, so make sure a good one is used, or it will be a bad day when the gun falls in the dirt.

Get it from Amazon now: $169.99 & FREE Returns

 

4. Sig Sauer P365 - CO2-Powered Small BB Gun


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Highlight: Blowback metal slide.

Helpful review: The Sig Sauer replica air gun is impressive, walks, and looks just like the real thing. The only difference is that one is a gun, and the other is a replica, which is a pretty big difference.
This replica will do everything I need until the camera gets too close when I get a camera that close to show finger placement, etc. When the camera is that close, it can point out that this is a replica, that the finish looks fake, or that it is bogus for a real gun. All I have to do is back the camera up about two feet and then dial in the focus, and everything looks like it should.
The heft of this replica will be about the same as an unloaded pistol, but a fully loaded magazine will add weight to the gun and the way it wears in the holster. If pure training, like a holster maker letting one of these go home with a customer to try on the holster style to see if that is the one for them, the weight will be off from a real gun with a loaded magazine.
So far as the BB function, it works like it is supposed to, but loading the BBs is a pain in the ass. They must be loaded one at a time, which gets tedious, especially for a BB gun. BB guns are made to be shot like a wild man; I think it says so in the bible, by the boring parts, so it will take some looking. Make sure to lube the BBs with a drop of Prolix, so they spread the lube around and do not hang up like a dry plug in a small tube.

Get it from Amazon now: $99.99 & FREE Returns

 

5. Sig Sauer M17 - CO2 Pellet Pistol


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Highlight: This BB handgun feels like an actual Sig M17.

Helpful review: This military-style M17 air pistol makes my heart happy. This air gun needs or craves oil, if possible. The gun uses a rotary magazine to feed BBs into the chamber.
The rotary magazine makes this air pistol into a training tool or modeling pistol in my world. I'm not too fond of the rotary magazine design for air guns. They seldom work reliably for me, and the frustration that comes with that is not worth it. The Rotator magazine issues are my opinion and not everyone else's. Some folks love rotator magazines and more power to them. Maybe they do something I don't, which is my fault.
The slide is not full blowback, it moves enough to load the chamber and cock back the hammer, so it does have blowback, not entirely the same, however. The good part about this half-blowback thing is that it is not wasting CO2 for a nonoperational function.
When I hold this gun, it feels like a military Sig M17 and looks like it from a distance, so I love it for working with photography. It is also great for training customers on concealed carry and choosing the proper holsters and gear.

Get it from Amazon now: $159.99 & FREE Returns

 

6. Umarex Steel-Storm - Powerful BB Gun for Adults


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Highlight: Single Shot or Burst Fire.

Helpful review: Talk about a space gun-looking thing. Umarex made this air gun entirely out of plastic. So, to protect it and keep it functional, lube the hell out of this thing. Get out the Prolix, put some drops down the barrel, let it run not the trigger box, lube the sliding parts, lube the magazine, and use a drop or two on the CO2 seal.
The gun will fire full auto out of the box, not burst firing. The modifications needed are elementary, and they even have a YouTube video on how to do them. I will not be using this one for modeling or training; this one is designed to shoot stuff at full auto when I can afford that many CO2 parties. I did the burst fire modification to show folks how the burst works, and for cheap, and in the shop, firing into a cardboard box with an old pillow placed in it.
So far, I have not had a single malfunction. This does not surprise me; I have not reviewed anything from Umarex that did not work above and beyond what I thought it would operate. The fun factor of this BB gun cannot be experienced in print. This gun needs to be shot to have the fun that comes with it. I have to restate the need for lubrication; the plastic-on-plastic parts will wear from friction, which is not the lube's most significant need. The plastic on plastic will create friction, and the gun's functionality will suffer. The plastic will get hot and can swell.
Still, the main issue is that similar materials moving past one another will cause it to gall. Then things will go bad in a hurry, especially on full auto.

Get it from Amazon now: $115.00 & FREE Returns

 

7. Colt Defender - Semi-Auto .177 BB Gun


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Highlight: All-metal Colt replica.

Helpful review: This air gun makes me swoon, and that is a lot of guy to make swoon. The side is even marked as a Colt Defender in white highlighted lettering, which is fabulous.
The accuracy is a little suspect, and I did not get it to drill targets. I am unsure if I will try to target shoot with this air pistol. I do shoot it now and then, just for kicks and giggles. I find it hard to have a functioning air pistol and some BBs handy and not shoot it at something around me. This replica cannot be beaten for modeling holsters, different carry options, and operating 1911 in hand.
The grips are my option as a custom gun builder—just cheap. They are made from cheap plastic and are put on the gun to finish the product. I don't know if good grips can be replaced on this Colt replica. I better get the gal in New York to mail it back, and I will get some put on there, even if I have to 3D print some.
The hammer, trigger, and other levers are a little too perfectly black when it comes out of the box. All I did was scratch the edges on some sandpaper, and it looks like this gun has spent a lot of time in a holster. I could do the same on the muzzle end of the slide to produce some holster wear as well.
The rear sights are adjustable and look like replica Delta sights. The front sight has a white dot in its center, like my other Colts, and it feels like I am actually pointing my carry gun when practicing with it. This replica will fit into custom-made holsters for the Colt Defender; it is closely built to original specs. I can put a laser or light on the rail and will add them for some future photography shoots as well.

Get it from Amazon now: $59.99 & FREE Returns

 

8. Daisy Powerline 415 - Cheap BB Gun


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Highlight: High-cut thumb web grip.

Helpful review: The air pistol looks and feels like a real gun, but it's made from plastic. Because it's made of plastic, the pistol's weight is not the same or even close to that of a real gun. However, there are reasons why this Daisy is considered one of the most popular cheap BB guns on the market.
The look and feel of the air pistol are excellent to use as a photography prop, but I have to be careful getting too close. This air gun is not made or licensed by a gun maker; Daisy makes it, and it says so on the slide.
This full-size replica gun is light and made of all plastic, making it a great trainer for people who have never shot. I have used it several times to have kids try out a full-size pistol to see if it would work for them. I find that once the never-shooters get used to the size and feel of the pistol, they love to shoot it. Coming from Daisy, this air gun will probably work like new until it is 20 years old. The CO2 is easy to use, and the new shooters love it the longer they shoot it.
The safety switch shows a red dot when the gun is ready to shoot. This standard for Daisy air guns makes it easy to use as a teaching aid for new shooters. By having this safe/fire red dot, as the coach, I can see if the gun is ready or if it has been made safe with a glance, and that makes shooting safer for everyone, especially in the backyard where the windows are right there and do not need to be replaced.

Get it from Amazon now: $59.99 & FREE Returns

 

9. Umarex SA 10 - .177 BB/Pellet Handgun


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Highlight: The blowback action is totally realistic.

Helpful review: I am not sure what Umarex was going for with this one. The tiger guard is great for shooting with gloves on, and I use it to show the value of this to summers, especially here in Utah. The pistol barrel works or looks like an extended barrel for a suppressor but is a bit over the regular extension. I can tell everyone that this thing works like a Umarex air gun, and I like it.
This is one of the few air pistols I have ever had or even read about, and it has a removable slide to clean it and check for things not going well. The slide is cut away to show off the gold finish on the barrel, and the gun looks very cool. The hang-up with this air gun is the use of the rotary magazine. This pistol works best shooting pellets as well. I removed the magazine feed and just went with the single-load pellet, and it works great.
The pellets are accurate, or as precise as an air pistol will be, in dead beer cans at 20 feet, and that is good to me. The power from the CO2 is excellent for this pistol, and the CO2 pressure stays for days after I sat it down to answer the phone. After the phone sat on the patio furniture for two days, I cleaned the yard for the grandkids visit, picked up the Umarex, loaded a pellet, and shot it at my rotating target. It still had pressure, and there was lots of it.

Get it from Amazon now: $94.99 & FREE Returns

 

10. Crosman Vigilante - CO2-Powered .177 BB/Pellet Revolver


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Highlight: Finally, a revolver magazine that works.

Helpful review: The reason the magazine works is not that it is made better; it is because it is the revolving cylinder. The cylinder works like a champ and never fails, like a real revolver.
This revolver replica will not be used for photography or even to train new shooters; it is for fun. When it showed up, I knew it would not replace real guns for the models, but it holds pellets, which made me happy.
I filled this gun up with pellets and new CO2, went to the field down the street, and let the fun begin. This thing packs a punch and delivers pellets right where I aim it. I did not need to try and adjust the sights; they nailed everything right out of the box. I may have been lucky to get a gun that had the sights put on right, or maybe they bore sight at the factory; I highly doubt that, but that is what I am going with.
The grip for this revolver clone is my favorite part. It is big and fits in my hand like the real thing. Finally, I have a pellet pistol that feels right, unlike it was made for tiny hands. It makes the trigger pull smoother for me and my bear-paw hands, making me more accurate. The barrel is about six inches long, so the sight radius is more like I am used to, making me even happier.
This pellet gun has a place to attach a red laser or flashlight under the barrel. That looks dumb to me when I see it on real revolvers, so I can't talk myself into it. Then, I read some reviews of shooters hitting targets at 70 feet and hammering the target. I know the power of this revolver comes from the CO2 and the right pellets, so maybe I will think harder about it. I have to get out of my head and let it look funny and be more effective.

Get it from Amazon now: $72.99 & FREE Returns


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