15 Best 22LR Pistols For Sale – 2024

Last Updated June 2nd 2024

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Winners at a Glance

Image	Product	Detail	Price
	Ruger MKIV 22/45 Lite	Overall Winner	Lowest Price
	Ruger Wrangler	Best Revolver	Lowest Price
	Smith and Wesson M&P	Top striker fired handgun	Lowest Price
	Volquartsen Black Mamba	Most Out There Custom Target Pistol	Lowest Price
	Glock G44	Top Glock	Lowest Price

Intro

Everybody needs the best 22 pistols. They can go all day at the range, you won’t feel the financial pain that even a 9mm inflicts these days, and they are all sorts of fun.

The humble 22 has a lot to give. The ammunition is some of the cheapest in the world, is a capable hunting round for varmints and critters and is an invaluable part of your firearms education.

Israel’s State Security famously used them for assassinations, too, but that was kind of a quirky thing. Mossad does a lot of stuff that we maybe wouldn’t…

Still, the best 22 Long Rifle pistols will pay for themselves with one day of backyard plinking and will teach you about good technique, basically for free. You have such a wide variety to choose from and can get 22LR versions of popular EDC guns, massive revolvers, and even AR pistols.

So what is the best 22lr pistol for sale right now? We think it’s the Reguer Mark 4, but here is the full review of our picks.

1. Ruger Mark IV 22/45 Lite

• Price: $569.99
• Caliber: 22LR
• Barrel Length: 4.4″
• Total:  8.5″
• Weight: 2.2lb
• Magazine Capacity: 10 + 1 Rounds

Overall Winner

Pros and Cons

Pros

• One button takedown for simple cleaning
• Threaded barrel for suppressor
• No moving slide means less recoil

Cons

• Looks like a toy gun
• Capacity could be better
• Slamming mags home can pinch your skin bad.

The Ruger Mark IV compact tactical pistol is the stuff of legend and is one of everybody’s favorite range guns.

This is a tactical version with a rail on top for red dot sights that turns it into a real multi-purpose handgun. That could be useful if you live in the country and like real small game hunting, a pest free yard or you’re serious about your target shooting. 

But there’s a Ruger Mark IV 22lr for everybody. There’s a basic semi automatic pistol, a high quality target practice option and a few other high standard guns that you can see here:

• Ruger Mark 4 pistols in 2024 – Full Review.

We really like the old Tactical semi auto pistol by the way. This is really just a drilled out and lightened version, but it’s newer and sexier. If that’s a thing…

It’s easy to handle, you can strip it with the one button takedown mechanism and with the right optics you have a near perfect set-up. And there’s a massive aftermarket parts & accessories industry aimed at recreational and competitive shooting . its accuracy and reliability make it a good gun for Steel Challenge. We highly recommend it.

Too many people claim this top rated pistol as their favorite range shooting gun. That can’t be a coincidence.

Just be careful how you reload. If, like me, you’re a mag slammer, then you too can pinch the hell out of your hand when you reload.

2. Ruger Wrangler

• Price: $199.99+
• Caliber: 22 Long Rifle
• Action: Double Action/Single Action Revolver
• Barrel length: 4.62 inch
• Total: 10.25 inch
• Weight: 1.875lb
• Magazine capacity: 6

Champion Revolver

Pros and Cons

Pros

• It’s super cheap.
• Good ol cowboy look.
• Addictively cheap to shoot.

Cons

• Weight
• Aluminum-frame doesn’t scream endurance.

Meet the Ruger Wrangler 22LR. It is an authentic Wild West Colt six shooter tribute with the Coyote Tan Cerakote finish. As Liberals would say, there’s a lot to unpack here…

But none of it really matters.

What does matter is that the aluminum alloy frame Ruger Wrangler 22LR fits the basic profile of the old Colt Single Action Army in terms of size and shape. It is also cheap, built to a high standard, fun to shoot and extremely reliable, & accurate, with a sweet trigger pull.

The Wrangler 22LR rimfire handgun is the best revolver, if you’re just looking for a fun full size wheelgun with no real purpose in life. Lots of you are.

Another option is the Ruger Single Ten, which packs 10 rounds into the cylinder.

3. Smith & Wesson M&P 22 Compact

• Price: $399.99
• Barrel length: 3.56″
• Magazine capacity: 10+1
• Weight: 0.94lb

No 1 striker fired 22LR Handguns

This is another high standard 22 trainer if you rock a Smith and Wesson M&P Shield as your every day carry. The S&W M&P 22 Compact 22lr rimfire semi auto pistol will feel familiar enough to make it invaluable as a training aid while you plink away with cheap ammunition.

You get 10+1 capacity, ambidextrous manual safety and you can choose an S&W model with a threaded barrel that is suppressor-ready, seriously tacticool and accurate.

It’s a high price, high spec, high standards handgun that is also the only 22 pistol you should ever need. This S&W model is a great training tool and the accuracy and reliability is bang on.

4. Sig Sauer P322

• Price: $399.99
• Barrel length: 4″
• Total: 7″
• Magazine capacity: 20+1
• Weight: 1.1lb

A New Contender

This Sig P322 is clearly an evolution of the Sig P320, and that is a good thing.

Sig conquered the world with the P320 compact has been a stalwart in our 9mm compact CCW features for years. That means a lot of research and development went into this gun and now we get the best rimfire pistol built to the same high standard.

This Sig P322 looks a simplified version, although it is an optics ready pistol with a fiber optic front sight that’s designed to co-witness red dot sights. All the controls are present and correct and you get that near perfect shape, slide serrations and grip from the the 9mm pistols, as well as that high capacity magazine.

You also get a threaded barrel adapter, so the Sig P322 is ready for a suppressor right out the box on what is the favorite 22lr handgun for lots of folks.

5. American Tactical Imports GSG Firefly

• Price: $242.99
• Barrel length: 4 inch
• Total: 7.2 inch
• Capacity: 10+1
• Weight: 1.53lb

Tribute to a Legend

The ATI GSG Firefly is actually a pretty faithful recreation of one of the most famous 22 pistols and revolvers of all time, the Sig Mosquito.

This icon of the 22LR rimfire pistol world was discontinued back in 2013. Before then, the German company had one of the best 22 pistols of all time on its hands.

Now German company GSG bought the license and created a budget version of the Sig Mosquito 22lr rimfire pistol that will cost you a less than $200. With the help of plastic AR-15 guys ATI, that gives you an all-metal suppressor ready tactical handgun with a high standard threaded barrel.

That will prepare you for a full-sized 1911 or Sig P229, without the ammo costs or hard recoil. You can use a number of muzzle devices, too, on the threaded barrel of these super reliable firearms. It’s also great to practise shooting techniques and the trigger pull makes this a favorite 22lr handgun.

The likes of the ATI GSG Firefly are a great option for novices and old hands alike. This is great practise if you own a new Sig P229 or any of the variants as home pistols. And it is fun to plink with.

6. Glock G44

• Price: $359.99
• Barrel length: 4.02″
• Total: 7.28″
• Capacity: 10+1
• Weight: 0.915lb

Self Defense Training Champion

The Glock G44 is a great trainer gun and some might say it’s the best 22 pistol, but we’re not Glock fanboys round these parts.

We do accept, though, that the Glock G44 is a great little pistol that is fun at the range, even though it’s no match for the competition pistols.

A responsible gun owner practices. This Glock 44 22LR makes it easier, and does so at an affordable price that won’t break the bank.

You can get a caliber conversion kit for a 9mm Glock, but honestly you’re better off buying this one off the peg. We generally don’t recommend a caliber conversion kit for handguns, although they can work well with the best AR-15s.

• Leading Glock handguns on sale.

7. Volquartsen Black Mamba

• Price: $1,425.99
• Barrel: 6″
• Capacity: 10+1
• Weight: 2lb

Custom 22LR Pistol for Competitive Shooting

The undisputed king of 22lr competition pistols, the Volquartsen Black Mamba is as awesome as it is expensive.

The Black Mamba target pistol was a Ruger Mark 4 back in the day, but these are full custom competition pistols that have been given the full treatment and is obviously a tack driver.

You could bang the best pistol red dots on top and use it for small game hunting, but this is really a high end target pistol.

It’s about as extreme as you’re ever likely to get when it comes to 22LR competition pistols, and we love the Black Mamba for that.

8. Taurus TX22 22LR

• Price: $271.40
• Barrel: 4.1″
• Total: 7″
• Capacity: 16+1
• Weight: 1.1lb

Good Cheap Plinker

Taurus has done good work in the polymer frame pistols sector recently with the Taurus G2 and G3 models.

The new model Taurus TX22 compact 22lr pistol has made a similar splash in the best 22LR handgun market.

Now there isn’t anything really groundbreaking here. Just a manual thumb safety, which is nice, and a relatively simple compact tactical pistol at an affordable price. It’s more of a practise gun than the real thing, but it’s awesome.

The polymer grip with interchangeable backstraps is probably the highlight and comes with a neat set of angles that are mirrored in the trigger guard.

It might be the best 22LR pistol at this affordable price point.

9. Kel Tec P17 22LR Pistol

• Price: $221.99
• Barrel: 3.9″
• Capacity: 16+1
• Weight: 0.8lb

Cheap, Fun and Double Stacked

The company has a range of 22 pistols and we like one or two others more, but the KelTec P17 22LR pistol is the volume seller.

It is a simple, low budget pistol that is ideal for range shooting, but you can trade up to the high capacity Kel Tec CP33 that is a lot of fun. But we had to make choices and there are feeding issues with the Kel Tec CP33 that means we’ll save that for another day.

If you’re prepared to step in to 22WMR then the Kel-Tec PMR is a great gun with a serious following.

You can get this in black or Flat Dark Earth and it’s a fun gun, rather than a serious contender in any one category.

10. Walther PPQ M2 22

• Price: $369.99
• Barrel: 5″
• Total: 8.1″
• Capacity: 12+1
• Weight: 1.19lb

Left Field Favorite

Do you want a 22 that looks and feels like a standard striker-fire polymer pistol? If you’re looking for a training weapon, then the answer should really be yes if your everyday carry is one of many plastic fantastics that include the Springfield Armory XDMOD2 and Glock 19 alike.

The striker fired Walther PPQ has a 5″ barrel and a sight with an orange fiber. So for firearms training, particularly with the quick draw aspect, and sight acquisition, these popular models are a much more useful 22 handgun.

It will help you with your firearms training drills, which every responsible gun owner with high standards does, and is a total tack driver.

Some people still like the smaller Walther P22 rimfire pistols on the market, but honestly these are newer, better, more representative rimfire handguns to train with. Look out for the Walter PPK 22 LR later on (spoiler alert etc…). But honestly we think the Walther P22 has had its day.

This matte black plastic fantastic with the deep slide serrations is good. And the full size 9mm pistols are amazing.

Junior Version of the Grown Up 9mm

The slide comes with the right amount of serrations, front and rear, so you can handle the Walther P22 just like you would a larger caliber pistol. The Novak rear sight and high vis front work well and everything just feels right.

Spend two or three days perfecting your technique, and these guns pay for themselves with the money you save on cheap ammunition.

I guess we’re saying buy a Walther P22, yeah.

11. Ruger LCP ii Lite Rack

• Price: $328.99
• Barrel: 2.75 inch
• Total: 6.5 inch
• Weight: 0.7lb

Great Handgun for Women and Elderly Shooters

The polymer framed LCP is a legend in 380 Auto striker fired pistol circles. And quite rightly so.

The Ruger Lite Rack isn’t a range toy, or a training gun for new shooters. The Ruger is specifically sold as carry handguns for those that simply cannot rack or take the recoil of 9mm, or 380 ACP.

But on these shores, arthritis sufferers, the elderly and simply small frame people and women might opt for this 10-round pistol that will only hurt the opposition.

A non lethal pistol for self defense is also becoming a thing in today’s world. And some people need a pocket vermin gun for when animals go rogue then you have your Lite 22LR pistol.

In short, the little Ruger has a place in this world. And that might be in your underwear, apparently…

12. Heritage Rough Rider

• RRP: $169.99
• Barrel: 6.5″
• Total: 11.75″
• Weight: 2lb

Feel Like a Cowboy

We had to have at least one proper cowboy revolver and here it is, the Heritage Manufacturing Rough Rider.

It’s cheap, simple and a great little gun with a stainless steel frame and cylinder.Are these 22lr handguns going to be as accurate as the Ruger at 20 feet? No, but then it does come with real old world character.

This is an 11.85-inch gun, too, so it is one of the biggest here. It weighs in at 2lb, you get imitation Mother of Pearl grips, a proper blued metal finish and a great gun that will put a smile on your face. You also get a thoroughly modern transfer bar safety mechanism with the Heritage Rough Rider.

This affordable cowboy gun you can order today on your credit card is a schoolboy fantasy made real and it’s super fun to shoot. So enjoy it without breaking the bank.

Now there are weird variants of the Heritage Rough Rider, including a full size 16-inch barrel version and another with a 1-inch barrel and a bird’s head grip.

The Heritage Barkeep is beyond an oddity, but that rimfire revolver is a fun little thing to have in your collection. Obviously it’s double action & single action, depending on your mood.

Of course you can opt for a Rock Island Armory too.

13. Ruger SR22 Rimfire

• RRP: $448.99
• Barrel length: 3.5″
• Total: 6.4″
• Capacity: 10+1 Rounds
• Weight: 1.09lb

The budget friendly Ruger SR22 is here by popular demand. Having given the win to the Ruger Mk4, we were going to leave this fairly straightforward, hammer-fired, plastic training pistol off this list.

People complained…

So, here it is. A solid little hammer fired pistol with a matte black finish. That means it is useful for drills, shooting skills, backyard plinking and simply gun owners getting your eye in.

Do quick draw drills, shot grouping and more with a Ruger SR22, before you move up to your 9mm.

You get a manual thumb safety, neat magazine release and a rail for a laser or light. Also, you could mount a dryfire training system on there and analyse your work.

A Tool, Not Just a Toy

A decocking lever and a three-dot sighting system, together with an adjustable rear sight, are nice touches on these popular models, as is the aluminum slide. This is a good rimfire for practising everyday carry situations, mag changes and grouping with multiple targets.

14. Walther PPK

• RRP: $356.99
• Barrel: 3.3″
• Total: 6.1″
• Capacity: 10+1 Rounds
• Weight: 1.25lb

The Walther PPK lets you live out the James Bond fantasy without breaking the bank.

Just enjoy this Walther PPK as a fun gun. It’s no CCW, but it is a joy to play with from time to time. Wear a tux to the range, get a British accent. You do you…

15. Browning Buck Mark Challenge

• RRP: $552.99
• Barrel length: 7.5″
• Total: 11.3″
• Capacity: 10+1 Rounds
• Weight: 2.5lb

Browning has taken the traditional pistol design and brought it up to date with a look more in line with modern semi-automatic pistol with a sporting flavor for the sheeting range.

This has some rosewood and blued nostalgia to it though, but this Buck Mark is a high-tech competition 22 pistol at heart and was arguably the best pistol for a long time until Ruger raised its game.

The Browning BuckMark series has evolved into a high-quality model line-up in its own right. Now you can get the Camper, Contour, Plus, Challenge, Hunter etc.

The Browning Buckmark single action pistol is milled from a single piece of aircraft-grade aluminum billet. This Buck Mark has become the watchword for precision engineering, reliability and consistency.

Adjustable rear sights and a fiber optic front sight are ideal for competition, and every touch point generally has a purpose. There are pros and cons, but the Browning Buckmark has a devoted following for a reason.

What is Our Top Pick For 22 Ammo?

We did a massive deep dive into the best 22LR ammo here.

Again we’re sending you to Palmetto State Armory first, the rest second. Lucky Gunner has some great handgun ammo deals in bulk. Rifle ammo, too, of course, and rimfire ammo for your 22LR handguns, rifles, shotguns etc. So look there too when you buy a gun online and buy bulk ammo.

Remember to organize the price low to high to get the gun deals, but also the companies have some solid recommendations.

• Firearms Depot – 22LR ammo, rifle ammo, rimfire ammo, shotgun ammo, 9mm ammo.
• Palmetto State Armory – Great deals on handgun ammo, bulk ammo and gun parts. Great daily deals.

Where to Buy a 22lr

The best gun stores for 22 firearms & handguns include Palmetto State Armory and Guns.com with daily deals.

Now it’s not hard to buy one, but you can still save a lot of money if you go to the right places like Palmetto State Armory. Guns.com has a lot of great deals and hard to find firearms, handguns, rifles, shotguns & single shot weapons.

But Palmetto State Armory is the one for budget gun options.

They have gift cards as well, so you can sort a friend out this Christmas.

Now we know Brownells has solid deals, too, and we will often point you to Primary Arms. But it’s just that with these particular weapons, PSA is the runaway winner.

• Get the top gun deals at Palmetto State Armory.
• Guns.com – Selection of the best 22 pistol choices
• Sportsman’s Guide – 22 pistols you’ll love.

What About the best 22LR Rifles?

You can have a real long range precision rifle, a Scout rifle, a purpose built range target shooters for recreational shooting at the shooting range with a cold hammer forged barrel through to compact tactical rifles with scopes & optics.

Standard model options include the classic lever-action and bolt-action rifles you know and love..

But 22 precision rifle options are small scale versions of the long range sniper rifles we have elsewhere shooting bigger ammo. Indeed you get some of the same models.

The rimfire Ruger Precision rifle is the most famous, but you can get a Scout rifle from Steyr and lots of other options.

• The top 22 rifles on sale in 2022. A precision rifle or an AR-22? We got guns, gear, accessories.
• 9 leading bolt action 22s on the market. Get a precision rifle, wide variety of barrel lengths for long range and yard work.

Check Out These Posts Too

If you got this far, frankly you’re a legend. And your reward? More posts. That is really all we’ve got to give…

• 22 revolvers. The top revolvers from S&W, Taurus and more.
• sub-compact 9mm pistol, concealed carry handguns.
• 15 sub-compact 1911 45 ACPs for the best carry guns, gear, accessories etc.
• Pump Action shotguns, the best in 2024

FAQ

1. Is 22LR good for concealed carry?

No we don’t think that 22LR is a smart choice for a concealed carry pistol or home defense. 9mm, 380 ACP and 38 Special all have far more stopping power. You need to have a specific reason to use a 22LR as a concealed carry handgun or as your main home defense weapon, like issues with your hands strength.

Some elderly shooters choose to carry a 22LR because realistically it is going to do enough to dissuade all but the most determined attackers. It’s easy to rack the slide on a semi auto pistol, it’s super easy to shoot and recoil is minimal. It is just 22LR has so much less power and isn’t guaranteed to stop anybody. A micro compact 9mm is the way to go for most people for home defense and CCW.

2. Why are 22LR handguns so popular?

Cheap ammo, a surprisingly versatile and effective round, and a vast choice of weapons mean 22LR is as popular now as it has ever been. These guns are low recoil, an accident with 22LR might now have life-changing consequences and for those reasons lots of people use them as training guns, for them and the kids.

Target shooters have found a perverse pleasure in getting the absolute maximum out of this tiny round, too, so there are precision weapons costing thousands chambered in 22 and destined for top-level competition.

3. What is the most famous 22 handgun?

The Colt Woodsman. In 1915, Colt released the Colt Model 1915 designed by the icon John Moses Browning. This was aimed at recreational shooters and used some of the architecture of the 1911. By 1927 the little target pistol had acquired the name Colt Woodsman and it stayed in production until 1977. Firearm owners and enthusiasts love the Colt Woodsman and used examples go for good money.