Ar-15 reviews from Reddit

Summary

We analyzed 210 Reddit reviews across 15 subreddits and 35 posts to rank the best Ar-15 brands recommended by redditors, including communities like r/ar15, r/liberalgunowners, r/CAguns, r/Wildlands, r/tacticalgear. Top-rated brands include BCM (4.5/5), IWI (4.6/5), PSA (4.1/5).

Stats

Reviews210

Subreddits15

Posts35

Brands59

Products70

Top communities

r/ar1584 r/liberalgunowners47 r/CAguns10 r/Wildlands10 r/tacticalgear8

210 reviews from

and

By Brand

By Product

BCM

4.5

(19)

"PSA or M&P sport iii for sub $1k, BCM for over $1k."

"The BCM’s noted here are good choices."

"BCM is solid, PSA Sabre series is also solid for the price."

"BCM. makes excellent, high quality rifles/uppers/lowers but the price of their lowers (when you can find them) are pretty steep at around $400."

"BCM. It just works and it’s got identical if not superior build quality"

"BCM upper with what ever comp you deem fit for you"

"BCM/Aero."

"1200ish you can build a BCM/Aero (reddit special)"

"A build with a BCM upper receiver and bcg, Criterion or Centurion barrel."

"Bcm is best bang for buck"

IWI

4.6

(14)

"Honestly … for the money the IWI Zion is amazing…. They are very accurate, reliable, and affordable."

"Found a new IWI Zion pistol for $700 at a shop. It’s been amazing so far."

"IWI Zion. Sig Tread M400. PSA Sabre."

"Can’t go wrong with IWI Zion."

"Top choice - IWI Zion (imo)."

"IWI Zion."

"Zion-15 is a great first AR."

"It's plain and simple. For the money, IWI Zion"

"It's plain and simple. For the money, IWI Zion."

"IWI Zion!"

PSA

4.1

(15)

"I just bought an AR from PSA. Said it was a BLEM. Not a mark on it. $469."

"PSA hands down. everything else sub $600 is garbage"

"PSA is your answer"

"I see no reason to get anything other than a PSA if you're trying to save as much money as possible"

"PSA or M&P sport iii for sub $1k, BCM for over $1k."

"PSA is a safe and economical bet."

"PSA is probably the best budget option out there and has a large range of price/feature options."

"PSA lower"

"You can probably get close to the reddit special for $600 if you buy the upper used on r/gunaccessoriesforsale and a cheap PSA lower."

"PSA or Aero are solid options."

Palmetto State Armory

4.7

(13)

"Palmetto state armory is what you’re looking for."

"Here ya go bud. Even saved you a few dollars to grab an optic/rounds"

"PSA"

"Here ya go bud. Even saved you a few dollars to grab an optic/rounds"

"For the first AR? 16in mid length or Carbine in 5.56 that psa offers."

"For the first AR? 16in mid length or Carbine in 5.56 that psa offers, literally one of their flagship PA-15 models."

"You can pick up a PSA lower for about $150 and change out trigger and stock."

"Or you can pick up a $600-700 PSA rifle, get a decent optic, sling, ammo and mags."

"I would recommend a PSA, and buy the more expensive kits around $1,000+ and build it yourself."

"You can go to Palmetto State Armory and get a complete lower for about $150 and a complete upper for $300."

Colt

4.6

(12)

"M4A1, TAR21 are two damn good ARs"

"Spent lots of time with the ACR, TAR, m4a1 and mk18. Mk18 is my easy favourite"

"The M4A1 has never failed me."

"Colt LE6920 is proven workhorse."

"Any Colt will fulfill your practical use needs."

"Colt sells 2 guns that comes without a stock or a handguard to let you customize it a bit"

"Actual GO-TO-WAR AR: Colt OEM 2 + stock + trigger guard + handguard = $1K."

"Mk18 for me, good damage, decent range"

"Overall m4 safe bet I'm really liking the aug recently though less recoil really good damage good range"

"K, I'll be "that" guy- COLT"

Sig Sauer

4.5

(11)

"It’s my first optic so it seems amazing."

"Sig Romeo 5 Gen II"

"Sig Romeo 5 is a tank for $140 or less with a lifetime warranty from a company that isn’t going anywhere"

"Inside 150yrds you can shoot a red dot all day long. Sig Romeo 5 and a 3x magnifier later and you’re set."

"I’ve got an m400 and it’s phenomenal"

"Sig MSR might be a good choice for you."

"The red dot is amazing, and even though it's cheap, the magnifier works well."

"I got a Romeo5 at Bass for $119 for the Tread."

"Amrikaarmory.com has Sig Romeo5s listed at $115."

"A few have suggests to sig Romeo 5 and then adding on a magnifier seems like a pretty good avenue to follow"

Smith & Wesson

4.6

(10)

"This is the way. Cheap factory rifle (I.e. M&P Sport III, Sig Tread M400, Ruger 556) and then swap out parts as desired."

"I shot my buddy's S&W MP Sport II and loved it."

"Top it with a SIG 1-6x scope, get some pro mags, some decent ammo, and you're off and running."

"If you are looking for something to use, abuse, and get the most resale value and warranty from then I would recommend S&W."

"If you're planning to put tons of ammo through it practicing, the S&W is worth the extra cost imo."

"S&W MP Sport II is one of the gold standards of entry level AR15s."

"700 and get a M&P sport 2."

"If you don’t want to build one, look for a good deal on a S&W Sport 2 or 3"

"Bang for the buck, M&P Sport III. Want to spend a little more? Aero lower + BCM upper."

Magpul

4.8

(9)

"Grip wise I’d suggest looking at the MOE +, same grip angle and style as the MOE but a rubber over mold."

"CTR imo, love my CTR stock. Huge improvement over the more basic magpul stocks."

"PMAGs. Sure, there are other good to excellent mags on the market, but PMAGs are consistently the best mags on the market while still being affordable and readily available."

"PMAG Gen 3."

"Magpul and any decent STANAG pattern aluminum mags (RIP Okay/Surefeed)."

"Magpul Gen 3 are without a question the pinnacle of reliability"

"Magpul gen 3 are the most reliable"

"Magpul or BCM, I like Midwest Industries' drop-in handguards but they're fairly expensive in comparison to the Magpul/BCM offerings."

"For 556, I have Daniel Defense and Duramag. For 300BO, I use magpul and lancer."

Holosun

3.9

(7)

"I like the holosun 510c & HM3x combo. It has changing reticles (circle+dot), a big viewing window, and using the magnifier just makes shooting too easy."

"Red dot. Anything from Holosun or Sig."

"Many with astigmatism swear by Holosun for whatever reason."

"If you want to just hit a steel silhouette, get a red dot. No eye relief to worry about. Something like a holosun 510."

"Grab a Holosun red dot and some magpul backup iron sights"

"Maybe a Holosun with magnifier would be $400-500 or so."

"Be careful buying optics on Amazon. I got either a fake Holosun or a very terrible example (bad QC?), twice, before I gave up and bought from a different source."

#10

Ruger

4.3

(6)

"I got a brand new Ruger for around $600 and it’s a solid rifle I have no complaints"

"My Ruger AR 5.56 has been a great rifle for me, reliable, accurate, shoots whatever I feed it."

"Mini-14"

"Well since you’re considering a mini-14 have you ever considered a mini-14? That’s about all you’re going to get."

"Ruger AR 556, it has been great for me as a starter and still good as I become more embedded into the 2A world with upgrades."

"I have the ruger mpr 556. I think I paid 800 for it."

#11

Daniel Defense

5.0

(5)

"Daniel defense If you’re on a budget, S&W’s M&P sport 3"

"For a quality rifle, I tend to recommend Daniel Defense. Reliable, accurate, consistent."

"Complete DD upper and Aero lower."

"Check Larue Tactical or DD."

"Daniel Defense comes to mind."

#12

Geissele

5.0

(4)

"Geissele, Daniel Defense, BCM, LWRC, SOLGW, are all really good."

"Geissele, Daniel Defense and BCM. Wait until Geissele is having a sale and snag one"

"Geissele, BCM, Daniel Defense"

"If I could only choose one brand to get everything from it’d be Geissele."

#13

Aero Precision

4.5

(4)

"Personally, I love Aero Precision. Not super-expensive but good quality."

"+1 for a full aero or aero + bcm build."

"Personally, I love Aero Precision. Not super-expensive but good quality."

"I like aero precision for ~$850."

#14

LWRC

4.3

(4)

"LWRC"

"Second LWRC, if you can afford it that is."

"LWRC, BCM"

"LWRC."

#15

Anderson

4.0

(4)

"Andro is decent, so is Anderson, budget friendly too."

"If you are looking for something to use and abuse go for anderson."

"I picked up an Anderson lower during a promo at a local shop"

"Anderson for that price if you can inspect it before hand seems like a good deal."

#16

Aero

4.0

(4)

"I dig my Aero 16". More on the $650 range but it's perfect for what i wanted."

"Best way to buy 'Aero' is with a coupon through a 3rd party which is actually showing stock quantity."

"Aero or BCM. Getting the upper and lower separately is often cheaper."

"Just don't buy aero directly from them right now. Aero is backlogged."

#17

Cyma

4.0

(4)

"Cyma platinum or a gbbr from we."

"Cyma platinum."

"Or any cyma Plat model."

"Cyma platinum."

#18

TAR

5.0

(3)

"Try the tar-21, I think it's the best AR."

"The TAR-21 is definitely superior to the ACR,. It definitely does more damage, including to vehicles, and has much better handling and recoil management"

"For whatever reason the TAR-21 was the first weapons case I found, and I used it for the entirety of the game. Just finished on Sunday. Loved it."

#19

CMMG

5.0

(3)

"Cmmg dissent 10.5" 300 BLK w/ brace"

"CMMG my man. Superior to S&W ARs all day."

"Cmmg all day"

#20

FN

3.8

(4)

"I personally use the MK17 Scar because I have more of a Ranger approach."

"Mk17 works wonders for me"

"FN upper"

"FN also makes an AR for like $950 at Sportsmans Warehouse. Worth looking at."

#21

LMT

4.3

(3)

"LMT is the best option their upgraded AR parts are made in house using custom metals."

"I know LMT is pricey but they’re 6.5 Creedmoors make my pp into PP"

"Building 'the best' for ARs can sometime just mean getting a complete upper."

#22

Sig

3.7

3.5

3.0

(1)

"I found an old post with a few comments saying they use the Vortex 1x prism and the Holo’ magnifier."

#59

Windham

3.0

(1)

"Windham"

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