Best .223 Remington Ammo
Every load we price, sorted by cost per round delivered to your state
We track 15 .223 Remington loads from 4 dealers. The cheapest delivered to AR, shipping included, is STV Technology .223 Remington 55gr Scorpio FMJ Ammo at $0.42 a round. By use: Target & Range from $0.42, Competition from $0.82, and Self-Defense from $0.93.
The .223 Remington is the civilian, SAAMI-spec version of the case the military loads as 5.56 NATO. It fires a .224" bullet and shows up in AR-15s, bolt-action varmint rifles and single shots. Remington chambered its first .223 rifle in December 1963 and filed the spec with SAAMI in 1964. The .223 chamber has a shorter throat than a 5.56 chamber and is built for lower pressure.
Match the bullet to the job. The 55gr FMJ loads, such as PMC Bronze, are for the range. The 40 to 55gr polymer tips and hollow points at 3,240 to 3,600 fps, like Winchester Varmint-X, are for prairie dogs and coyotes. The 68 to 75gr BTHP match loads need a 1:8 or faster twist. The .223 ammo on this page is safe in any .223, .223 Wylde or 5.56 chamber.
All .223 Remington Loads
Compare ballistics and prices across 15 products
| PRODUCT ↕ | GRAIN ↕ | VELOCITY ↕ | ENERGY ↕ | BC ↕ | USE CASE ↕ | BEST PRICE ↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
ADI World-Class .223 Remington Sierra MatchKing 69gr HPBT Ammo
69gr
• 2760 fps
• Competition
|
69gr | 2760 | 1289 | .301 | Competition | $0.82/rd |
|
Barnes .223 Remington 55gr VOR-TX TSX Flat Base Ammo
55gr
• 3240 fps
• Hunting
|
55gr | 3240 | 1282 | .209 | Hunting | $1.96/rd |
|
Federal .223 Remington 50gr Varmint & Predator JHP Ammo
50gr
• 3325 fps
• Hunting
|
50gr | 3325 | 1227 | .204 | Hunting | $1.16/rd |
|
Federal .223 Remington 53gr Hornady V-Max Polymer Tip Ammo
53gr
• 3400 fps
• Hunting
|
53gr | 3400 | 1360 | .29 | Hunting | $1.70/rd |
|
Federal .223 Remington 62gr MSR Fusion Bonded Soft Point Ammo
62gr
• 2750 fps
• Hunting
|
62gr | 2750 | 1041 | .31 | Hunting | $2.23/rd |
|
Federal Gold Medal .223 Remington 69gr BTHP Ammo
69gr
• 2950 fps
• Competition
|
69gr | 2950 | 1333 | .301 | Competition | $2.32/rd |
|
Hornady Black .223 Remington 62gr FMJ Ammo
62gr
• 3100 fps
• Self-Defense
|
62gr | 3100 | 1323 | .274 | Self-Defense | $0.93/rd |
|
Hornady BLACK .223 Remington 75gr BTHP Match Ammo
75gr
• 2790 fps
• Competition
|
75gr | 2790 | 1296 | .395 | Competition | $1.55/rd |
|
Hornady Critical Defense .223 Remington 73gr FTX Ammo
73gr
• 2790 fps
• Self-Defense
|
73gr | 2790 | 1262 | .265 | Self-Defense | $2.42/rd |
|
Hornady Frontier .223 Remington 55gr FMJ-BT Ammo
55gr
• 3240 fps
• Target & Range
|
55gr | 3240 | 1282 | .243 | Target & Range | $1.67/rd |
|
Hornady Frontier .223 Remington 68gr BTHP Match Ammo
68gr
• 2960 fps
• Competition
|
68gr | 2960 | 1323 | .355 | Competition | $1.77/rd |
|
PMC Bronze .223 Remington 55gr Full Metal Jacket Boat Tail Ammo
55gr
• 3200 fps
• Target & Range
|
55gr | 3200 | 1250 | .243 | Target & Range | $0.44/rd |
|
STV Technology .223 Remington 55gr Scorpio FMJ Ammo
55gr
• 3248 fps
• Target & Range
|
55gr | 3248 | 1328 | .272 | Target & Range | $0.42/rd |
|
Winchester USA .223 Remington 55gr FMJ Ammo
55gr
• 3240 fps
• Target & Range
|
55gr | 3240 | 1282 | .255 | Target & Range | $1.62/rd |
|
Winchester Varmint-X .223 Remington 40gr Polymer Tip Ammo
40gr
• 3600 fps
• Hunting
|
40gr | 3600 | 1151 | .2 | Hunting | $1.82/rd |
.223 Remington Trajectory Calculator
Calculate drop, velocity, and energy at any range
Advantages and Disadvantages
Pros
- Fits every chamber in the family: a .223, .223 Wylde or 5.56 rifle all fire .223 Remington safely.
- Recoil in a bolt gun is light enough to watch your own hits through the scope on prairie dogs.
- Against .22-250: less powder and lower velocity, so barrels last longer and the report is milder.
Cons
- Against .22-250: about 400 fps slower with the same bullet, so it drops and drifts more past 300 yards.
- A .224" bullet is light for deer, and some states bar .22 centerfires for big game, so check your state's hunting-cartridge rules.
- Older varmint barrels with 1:12 or 1:14 twist won't stabilize the 68 to 75gr match bullets.
- A rifle marked .223 Rem only should not be fed 5.56 NATO, which rules out military-spec loads in that gun.