Most Accurate 9mm Pistol out of the Box [2023 Updated]

There are many great 9mm pistols of the past and present out on the market. But, which ones are really accurate right out of the box without any customization.

We’ll be straight up with you. We did not test fire all the 9mm pistols (except a few) from the list below. The following sentiments were collected from shooters in various gun community.
We also understand these sentiments are subjective and not objective (scientific). You can take our suggestions of the most accurate 9mm pistols with a grain of salt.

As most of you all know the “Indian” is always the variable factor that has to do with accuracy and not the “arrow”. From the groups that have shot these 9mm pistols are the Joe average with maybe some military or law enforcement background. None of these shooters are newbies or of elite status like a Rob Leatham. Rob can pick up just about any pistol and be accurate with it.
As we stated earlier these reviews are not true gun benchmark from Smith&Wesson or Sig Sauer. These perspective are not from a defensive or combat shooter stand point either, just from the plinker/recreational shooter. In retrospect, if these were competitive shooters doing this accuracy test. Our list of 9mm pistols could be different or more 9mm’s added to this list.

The following are two 9mm pistol lists, the first is from shooters who just went out and shot targets without any purpose just on a “feel and where the bullet hits on target”.
The second group are the same type of shooters just different person. This group actually thought of ways to reduce human error as much as possible. For example shots were fired from a hand rest or sandbags. There were no warm-up firing, all shooting was done cold from the line. Atlanta Arms 115 grain 9mm FMJ match bullets were used. Shots were fired from 12 and 25 yards. Another thing to note, some pistols had optic sights mounted. This can affect accuracy as you find out later in the result section.
The course of fire was 5 shots at the 12 yard line and three 5-shot groups from the 25 yard.

After the smoke had cleared, the grouping is looked at to determine the accuracy of the pistol. For example, 1 inch groupings from 12 yards.

Also, just a heads up we added a few more 9mm pistol to our list, but never tested it. So basically these newer ones added are from word-of-mouth from our local shooters community. This is in a separate section way down below.



Here is the first list of most accurate 9mm pistol out of the box:

• Sig Sauer P226X5
  Single action trigger, adjustable, steel barrel
• Glock34
  Long barrel
• Swiss AT 84 S
  Considered a CZ75 clone but many shooters feel this is more accurate.
• Browning Hi-Power 9mm
  The name and reputation speaks for itself.
• Glock17
  Straight out of the box accurate
• Sig Sauer P210
  See the results from the test below.
• Beretta APX
  This shouldn’t have surprised you.

These 9mm pistol are really accurate, reliable and available in most local gun stores.


In the second list some of the 9mm’s are not your regular pistol that you’d see at the local gun store, they are quality target pistols for competition shooting. I think the rationale was to see how the regular pistols and higher end target pistol compares.
S&W Performance Center 5906 PPC 9mm
Sig Arms P210-5 Heavy Frame 9mm
Sig Sauer P210 Legend Target 9mm
Sig Sauer P226S X-Five Enhanced Classic 9mm
CZ 75 Tactical Sport 9mm
Pardini GT45-II 9mm
Beretta 92 Combat 9mm
Glock 17L 9mm (3rd gen)


Results
Based on the best group sizes, nearly all of the pistols performed well. Nearly every single pistol was capable of a group of less than 2 inches at 25 yards and less than 1 inch at 35 feet (11.7 yards). Despite the good performance, there was a clear stand out winner, the X-Five.
The X-Five shot the overall smallest group at 25 yards as well as the overall smallest average group at 25 yards and at 35 feet. This consistency, however, was likely driven by the unfair advantage of the Aimpoint T-2 red dot sight. Other pistols had excellent groups but could not get the consistency. This variability in the other pistol groups seemed highly affected by the type of iron sights particularly those used in the older pistols. Regardless of the unfair advantage, the X-Five turned in tiny group after tiny group including that 25 yard group of well under an inch.

The runner up was the S&W PPC9 6 inch. With that long sight radius, that hand built Performance Center fit, Briley bushing and excellent single stage trigger, the PPC9 excelled at accuracy. Its consistency nearly won the day. It may have been a closer race if we had mounted a red dot to the PPC9 instead of the irons.

The performance bargain was the CZ75 Tactical Sport. The TS ran competitively with pistols costing many multiples of its price and even beat many pistols costing far more. The sight radius, light trigger and weight make this a joy to shoot. For the shooter on a budget, the TS is an outstanding choice.

As noted earlier, in a better test, they would have shot three to five 10-shot groups at each range with each pistol for more statistically significant results. They couldn’t do so due to time, fatigue and other human constraints.

They began this test by trying to ascertain the most accurate pistols in this group test of high quality target pistols. They did our best to remove the human factor by shooting over support. Despite their best efforts, they ended up constrained by a very human factor: our vision and our ability to see each respective set of sights.

We hope this test was in some way helpful, but we stress that all these results should be taken with a grain of salt. This is a sample set of one of each pistol with one type of ammunition and one set of shooters. Your results may vary.

Best 25 Yard Groups
Sig Sauer X-Five Classic w Aimpoint T-2 0.893
CZ 75 Tactical Sport 1.029 inches
S&W 3566 1.381 “
Sig Arms P210-5 HF 1.622 “
S&W 5906 PPC9 6″ 1.628 “
Pardini GT45-II 1.796 “
Sig Sauer P210 Legend Target 1.829 “
Glock 17L Gen 3 2.155
Beretta 92 Combat 3.422

Best 12 Yard Groups
S&W 5906 PPC9 6″ 0.421 inches
Sig Sauer X-Five Classic with Aimpoint T-2 0.441 “
Glock 17L Gen 3 0.63 “
CZ 75 Tactical Sport 0.719 “
Sig Arms P210-5 HF 0.789 “
S&W 3566 0.866 “
Glock 17L Gen 3 0.88 “
Pardini GT45-II 0.906 “
Sig Sauer P210 Legend Target 1.002″
Beretta 92 Combat 1.181″

Other Pistol Notes
S&W 5906 PPC9 6″ By virtue of consistency the PPC9 came in second place in our accuracy test. It did not have the overall second smallest 25 yard group at 1.63 inches but it did have the overall second smallest average 25 yard group at 1.92 inches.
In addition the PPC9 has the overall smallest 35 foot group of 0.42 inches and the overall third smallest average group size at 35 feet of 0.89 inches. The 35 foot average was thrown off by a single bad group of 1.6 inches.
Sig Sauer P210 Legend Target The P210 Legend was very consistent. The best 25 yard group was a poor 1.83 inches but the average 25 yard group was a third best 2.02 inches.
The best 35 foot group was 1.00 inches and the average 35 foot group was 1.25 inches.
These were solid but not exceptional results from the German P210 and it appears that the Swiss P210 might have a slight edge on it based on best groups.
Sig Sauer P226S X-Five Enhanced Classic The X-Five had the unfair advantage of the Aimpoint T-2 red dot sight. This was reflected in the sheer consistency of group after group. We did not have the broader swings in group size at 25 yards that we had with other pistols as we settled into each new set of iron sights.
The X-Five achieved stunning accuracy. The smallest 5-shot group at 25 yards was 0.89 inches and the average 25 yard group (average of five groups) was a best overall 1.31 inches. These were both the smallest overall. The X5 also achieved the overall second smallest 35 foot 5 shot group of 0.44 inches and smallest 35 foot average group of 0.54 inches.
Even the worst groups were excellent. The worst 35 foot group was 0.65 inches and the worst 25 yard group was 1.63 inches.
The X-Five was the clear winner coming in first in nearly every metric, but we should have either equipped the other pistols with red dot sights or removed the red dot sights from the X-Five to keep the competition fair.
CZ 75 Tactical Sport The CZ Tactical Sport was the clear price to performance ratio winner.
It had a second best 25 yard group of 1.03 inches but was let down by a 2.30 inch average 25 yard group. The other four groups ranged from 2 to 3 inches.
It also had a 35 foot group of 0.72 inches and the second best average 35 foot group of 0.89 inches.
Although it did not outright win, the CZ kept up with pistols costing many times as much.

New Pistol List
Yes, as mentioned earlier in the article, this list will be updated, hopefully on a monthly basis. As I stated earlier, there is no particular method that we have of updating, most is done by sheer word-of-mouth from local pistol groups. So be sure and check on this section. And just so everyone knows, we don’t always give a huge description on why these pistols are accurate. You however, as the reader can weigh in on more info if you’d like. We normally have this done on our American Shooting Journal Facebook page, we just don’t like to do commenting on our website. Ok, enough gibberish.

• Canik TP9SFx
  
  Many 9mm shooters say this pistol is worth the bang, especially when you’re on a budget. $600, and consider a competition ready pistol, guess that’s why its accurate in its development. The brief specs features tungsten gray cerakote exterior with a 5.2-inch barrel and a 20 plus 1 magazine capacity.
• Wilson Combat EDC X9L
  
  This 9mm beauty purpose is for the recreational and defensive minded shooter. Sports an X-frame grip with an enlarged trigger guard window and paired with radius trigger pad length which helps with recoil control. Its like a 1911 with ergonomic design.
• SIG Sauer P210
  
  If you’re a Sig fan, this P210 is the American version. In this video Larry Vickers explains the tell-tale differences that distinguished the ones made from Germany, Swiss and American. Trigger mechanism is highly developed which is why its so accurate.

People Wonder about…
What 9mm pistol is most accurate?
“The Glock 19 is one of the most accurate and reliable handguns available.” The Glock 19 is likely the most popular 9mm handgun of all time—and with good reason. The 19 pioneered the compact size category, but it still comes standard with 15-round mags (it can also accept 17 to 33-round mags).

Is Glock or Sig better?
The Glock’s polymer construction makes it the lighter choice. However, that means that when you are using a higher caliber, the SIG handles recoil better than the Glock does. If you are looking for a well-concealed carry weapon, or a lighter one, the Glock will edge out the SIG in this category.

Do Navy SEALs use Glock or Sig?
The Navy SEAL’s standard-issue pistol is the Glock G19. SEALs are allowed to carry their personal choice in 9mm pistols, but many prefer to stick with the standard Glock 19.
How far is a 9mm accurate?
While a 9mm bullet may travel three miles under optimal conditions, how accurate it is, is all based on chances.

At what range is a 9mm lethal?
If the barrel is 5″ “full-length” pistol, designed to be lethal at any distance out to 50m. Most defense experts consider the round to be “effective” out to about 25m.

How far away can a 9mm be heard?
A handgun shot can be heard about a mile away.

How many walls will a 9mm go through?
Handgun rounds (9mm and . 45 ACP) all penetrated at least six walls of sheetrock.

Can a 9mm penetrate a car?
The engine of a car would stop all handgun bullets and many rifle bullets. The windshield would likely deflect many handgun rounds, but not as many rifle rounds.

$75.00 Holiday Special

Looking to get some Ammo, have a look below.

• {{i.title}}