Best 12 Gauge Ammo
Every load we price, sorted by cost per round delivered to your state
We track 57 12 Gauge loads from 4 dealers. The cheapest delivered to AR, shipping included, is Fiocchi Shooting Dynamics, 12 Gauge, 2 3/4", 1 oz, 7.5 Shot at $0.34 a round.
The 12 gauge is the most common US shotgun bore, about .73 inch, used for clay targets, upland birds, waterfowl, turkey, deer and home defense. Shells come in 2¾, 3 and 3½-inch lengths, measured after firing. The chamber length marked on the barrel is the longest shell it takes: a 3-inch gun fires 2¾ and 3-inch shells, never 3½.
Shot numbers run backward: #9 is 0.08 inch, #2 is 0.15 inch. Most loads here are 1 to 1⅛ oz of #7½ or #8 lead at 1,100 to 1,330 fps, for clays and doves. Some boxes give a "dram equivalent" instead of fps; it is an old black-powder rating that works as a velocity rating. Use #4 to #6 lead for pheasant and turkey. Waterfowl requires nontoxic shot, such as steel #2 or BB (Kent Fasteel). Rifled slugs like Remington Slugger are for deer from smoothbores. For home defense, 00 buckshot with .33-inch pellets is the usual choice.
All 12 Gauge Loads
Compare ballistics and prices across 57 products
| PRODUCT ↕ | GRAIN ↕ | VELOCITY ↕ | ENERGY ↕ | BC ↕ | USE CASE ↕ | BEST PRICE ↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 1255 | — | — | — | $0.49/rd | |
| — | 1255 | — | — | — | $0.48/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.44/rd | |
| — | 1290 | — | — | — | $0.49/rd | |
| — | 1220 | — | — | — | $0.49/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.47/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.42/rd | |
| — | 1330 | — | — | — | $1.28/rd | |
| — | 1330 | — | — | — | $0.48/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.42/rd | |
| — | 1180 | — | — | — | $0.42/rd | |
| — | 1180 | — | — | — | $0.43/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.44/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.43/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.43/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1250 | — | — | — | $0.34/rd | |
| — | 1350 | — | — | — | $0.44/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.42/rd | |
| — | 1500 | — | — | — | $1.11/rd | |
| — | 1500 | — | — | — | $0.81/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.59/rd | |
| — | 1625 | — | — | — | $1.21/rd | |
| — | 1300 | — | — | — | $0.97/rd | |
| — | 1300 | — | — | — | $0.92/rd | |
| — | 1475 | — | — | — | $0.91/rd | |
| — | 1475 | — | — | — | $0.89/rd | |
| — | 1290 | — | — | — | $0.49/rd | |
| — | 1100 | — | — | — | $0.45/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.43/rd | |
| — | 1100 | — | — | — | $0.44/rd | |
| — | 1275 | — | — | — | $0.97/rd | |
| — | 1450 | — | — | — | $0.98/rd | |
| — | 1500 | — | — | — | $1.14/rd | |
| — | 1300 | — | — | — | $1.80/rd | |
| — | 1300 | — | — | — | $1.74/rd | |
| — | 1330 | — | — | — | $0.75/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.59/rd | |
| — | 1185 | — | — | — | $0.59/rd | |
| — | 1560 | — | — | — | $1.55/rd | |
| — | 1400 | — | — | — | $1.13/rd | |
| — | 1300 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1300 | — | — | — | $0.41/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.39/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1250 | — | — | — | $0.38/rd | |
| — | 1250 | — | — | — | $0.39/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1200 | — | — | — | $0.38/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.42/rd | |
| — | 1145 | — | — | — | $0.41/rd | |
| — | 1180 | — | — | — | $0.40/rd | |
| — | 1,290 | — | — | — | $0.38/rd | |
| — | 1255 | — | — | — | $0.38/rd | |
| — | 1,145 | — | — | — | $0.44/rd |
Advantages and Disadvantages
Pros
- Heavier shot charges than a 20 gauge (1⅛ oz against 7/8 oz standard) put more pellets in the pattern.
- One gun with screw-in chokes covers clays, birds, turkey and deer by changing shells.
- 3½-inch shells in magnum guns carry 2 oz of turkey shot or 1½ oz of steel.
Cons
- More recoil than a 20 gauge, most of all with 3 and 3½-inch loads.
- Guns weigh more than comparable 20 gauges, which you feel on a long upland walk.
- Steel shot can damage older fixed full-choke barrels; check the gun maker before shooting it.
- Rifled slugs from a smoothbore are good to about 100 yards, while sabot slugs from a rifled barrel reach farther.