If you have ever shot a premium hunting load or loaded a big-game handload, you have almost certainly used Nosler. The Bend, Oregon company practically invented the modern premium hunting bullet: the legendary Partition, the polymer-tipped Ballistic Tip, the bonded AccuBond, and the lead-free E-Tip are all Nosler designs, and the company loads them into finished Trophy Grade and Match Grade ammunition and sells them as components to handloaders. Nosler is a premium brand, full stop — this is the ammo and the bullets you buy when one shot has to count. Here is who they are, what they make, and what is worth buying.
Who Nosler is
Nosler is an American premium ammunition and bullet maker founded in 1948 and based in Bend, Oregon. It is best known for inventing the Partition, Ballistic Tip, AccuBond and E-Tip hunting bullets, and it makes loaded Trophy Grade and Match Grade ammunition, premium reloading bullets and brass, and its own line of Nosler cartridges. It is family-owned and firmly in the premium tier.
The company exists because of a moose. In 1946, John Nosler was hunting in British Columbia when the bullets in his .300 H&H Magnum splattered on a mud-caked moose’s shoulder instead of penetrating to the vitals. Frustrated, he set out to build a bullet that would expand reliably at low velocity yet hold together at high velocity — and he settled on a radical idea: a dual-core bullet with a wall of copper, a “partition,” dividing the front and rear lead cores. The front half mushrooms for a wide wound; the rear half stays intact and drives deep. That fall, John and his friend Clarence Purdie each dropped a moose with a single shot. In 1948 he began selling the Partition commercially and founded Nosler, Inc.
The company started in Ashland, Oregon, moved to Bend in 1958, and is still family-owned and run there today. For more than 75 years Nosler has stayed focused on one thing — making the bullet, and the ammunition, that performs when it matters on game — and that single-minded focus is exactly why it sits at the top of the hunting market. The trade-off is right there in the price: Nosler is premium, and it is not cheap.
What Nosler makes
The bullets — Partition, Ballistic Tip, AccuBond and E-Tip
This is Nosler’s heart. The Partition (1948) is the original controlled-expansion big-game bullet and still one of the most trusted ever made. The Ballistic Tip (1984) added a streamlined polymer tip for flatter trajectories and explosive expansion — a favorite for deer and varmints. The AccuBond bonds the core to the jacket to combine Partition-style penetration with Ballistic Tip accuracy, and AccuBond Long Range (ABLR) extends that to long shots. The E-Tip is Nosler’s lead-free, all-copper hunting bullet for lead-restricted areas, and Varmageddon and Custom Competition cover varmints and target work.
Trophy Grade and Match Grade — the loaded ammunition
Trophy Grade is Nosler’s flagship loaded hunting ammunition, built on Nosler brass and topped with AccuBond, Partition or AccuBond Long Range bullets — premium, hand-inspected ammo for serious hunters. Match Grade loads Custom Competition and RDF bullets for precision shooters, and the Ballistic Tip Ammunition line offers a more affordable loaded option built around the Ballistic Tip.
The Nosler cartridges
Nosler is one of the few component makers to design its own cartridges. The 26, 28, 30 and 33 Nosler are fast, hard-hitting magnums built to fit a standard-length action, and the 22 Nosler is an AR-15 cartridge that beats the .223 on velocity. Nosler loads these in Trophy Grade and Match Grade and sells the brass for them.
Premium brass, handgun and defense
Nosler’s Premium and Custom brass is some of the most consistent unprimed brass a handloader can buy — weight-sorted, neck-sized and ready to load. Nosler also loads a handgun and defense line, including the Match Grade ASP pistol ammo and Assured Stopping Power defensive JHP.
Build quality and the premium difference
Everything Nosler makes is built around the bullet, and the bullets are held to tight tolerances — concentric jackets, controlled expansion, and consistent weights. The loaded Trophy Grade ammunition uses Nosler’s own premium brass and is hand-inspected, which is part of why it costs what it does. This is not high-volume range ammo and it is not trying to be; it is low-volume, high-performance hunting and precision ammunition where the goal is terminal performance and accuracy on the first shot, not the lowest price per round.
How Nosler compares
Nosler’s rivals are the other premium bullet and hunting-ammo makers. Barnes is the direct competitor on lead-free, all-copper bullets — its TSX and TTSX go head to head with Nosler’s E-Tip. Swift (Scirocco II and A-Frame) competes with the Partition and AccuBond on bonded and partitioned big-game bullets. Hornady (ELD-X, InterLock, Precision Hunter) and Federal Premium (Terminal Ascent, Trophy Bonded) are the big loaded-ammo rivals, and Berger and Sierra compete on the match and long-range side.
The honest trade-off: Nosler is expensive, and for a lot of deer hunting a cheaper bonded or soft-point bullet will do the job just fine. The proprietary Nosler magnum cartridges are superb performers but have thinner rifle and ammo availability than mainstream chamberings, and the newer 6.5 and .300 PRC cartridges have stolen some of their thunder. What you pay for with Nosler is proven, repeatable terminal performance — the confidence that the bullet will do exactly what it is supposed to do on an animal, which on a once-a-year hunt is worth a lot.
Who should buy what
- Big-game hunters who want the classic: Trophy Grade or handloads with the Partition — still one of the most dependable game bullets ever made.
- All-around hunters: AccuBond and AccuBond Long Range for the best mix of penetration, expansion and accuracy.
- Deer and varmint hunters: Ballistic Tip for flat shooting and dramatic expansion.
- Hunters in lead-free zones: the all-copper E-Tip.
- Precision and long-range shooters: Match Grade with Custom Competition or RDF bullets.
- Handloaders: Nosler bullets and Premium/Custom brass — top-tier components for building your own loads.
If you are cross-shopping brands for a specific job rather than buying Nosler in particular, our caliber-by-caliber roundups below pit Nosler against Hornady, Federal, Barnes and the rest head to head.
The Nosler philosophy
Nosler has always been a bullet company first and an ammunition company second, and that order tells you everything. The whole enterprise grew out of one hunter’s refusal to accept a bullet that failed on game, and three generations later the mission is unchanged: build the bullet that performs, then build the ammunition and the brass worthy of it. Nosler does not chase the bulk-ammo market or the lowest price — it chases terminal performance, and it has been the benchmark other premium bullet makers measure themselves against for the better part of a century.
How to choose your Nosler load
Start with the game and the distance, then pick the bullet. For deer at normal ranges, Ballistic Tip or AccuBond is plenty. For elk, moose and tougher animals, step up to the Partition or AccuBond for deep, reliable penetration. For long-range hunting, AccuBond Long Range holds energy and accuracy downrange. For lead-restricted areas, the E-Tip. If you reload, buy Nosler bullets and Premium brass and build the exact load your rifle likes; if you do not, Trophy Grade gives you the same bullets in hand-inspected factory ammo. When you want to compare Nosler against the other brands for a given caliber, the guides in the next section do exactly that.
The Partition, 75 years on
It is rare for a single product to define a company for three-quarters of a century, but the Partition has done exactly that for Nosler. Designed in a Bend garage out of one bad moose hunt, it solved a problem that had plagued hunters for generations — bullets that either blew apart or pencilled through — and it did so with a simple, brilliant idea that competitors spent decades trying to match. Newer Nosler bullets are more aerodynamic and the AccuBond may outsell it today, but the Partition is still in production, still dropping game all over the world, and still the bullet that built the brand. When people talk about “premium bullets,” this is where the conversation started.
Shop Nosler Ammo, Bullets & Prices
Live Nosler ammunition, bullets and brass with current prices, organized by caliber and updated automatically. Each row shows a cross-section of the Nosler lineup — from Trophy Grade hunting ammo to the reloading bullets and premium brass that made the brand.
Nosler .308 Winchester Ammo
Nosler 6.5 Creedmoor Ammo
Nosler .30-06 Springfield Ammo
Nosler .270 Winchester Ammo
Nosler Proprietary Magnum Ammo
Nosler Reloading Bullets
Nosler Premium Brass
Where Nosler Fits in Our Buying Guides
- Best .308 Ammo
- Best AR-15 Ammo (5.56 NATO / .223 Rem)
- Best Competition Ammo
- The State of Ammo Prices
Nosler FAQ
Where is Nosler ammunition made?
In Bend, Oregon, where the family-owned company has been based since 1958. Nosler makes its own bullets, brass and loaded ammunition there.
What is the Nosler Partition?
The original premium controlled-expansion hunting bullet, designed by John Nosler in the late 1940s. Its dual-core design with a copper partition lets the front expand while the rear drives deep — and it is still in production today.
Is Nosler ammo worth the money?
For hunting, yes — it offers proven, repeatable terminal performance and premium components. For high-volume range shooting it is overkill; cheaper brands make more sense for plinking.
What is the difference between Partition, AccuBond and Ballistic Tip?
Ballistic Tip is fast-expanding and accurate, best for deer and varmints; Partition is the deep-penetrating classic for tough, big game; AccuBond bonds the two ideas together for a do-everything bullet. E-Tip is the lead-free option.
What are the Nosler cartridges?
Proprietary magnums Nosler designed — the 26, 28, 30 and 33 Nosler for big game, and the 22 Nosler for the AR-15. They deliver magnum performance in standard-length actions.
Is Nosler brass good for reloading?
Yes — Nosler Premium and Custom brass is weight-sorted and prepped, and is regarded as some of the best factory unprimed brass available for precision handloading.
Nosler vs Barnes — which is better?
Both are premium. Barnes specializes in all-copper bullets (TSX/TTSX); Nosler offers a wider range from lead-core (Partition, Ballistic Tip) to bonded (AccuBond) to all-copper (E-Tip). The right choice depends on your game, your rifle and whether you need lead-free.
What tier is Nosler?
Premium. Nosler makes high-performance hunting and precision bullets, ammunition and brass — not budget range ammo.
Compare Nosler Head-to-Head
- Barnes vs Nosler — the all-copper penetration of VOR-TX TTSX versus the controlled-expansion Partition and AccuBond of Trophy Grade, with a full spec table and live prices. Both American-made.
Related Ammunition Brands
- Barnes Ammunition Parts
- Browning Ammo & Accessories Parts
- Federal Ammunition Parts
- CCI Ammunition Parts
- Winchester Ammunition Parts
- Speer Ammunition Parts
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