It's one of the oldest debates surrounding firearm calibers- and likely one of the most controversial. The two giants have each been around for over a century and are used in thousands of different firearms, and yet, even today there is still debate raging over which is the better handgun caliber.
Table of contents
Introduction
Among firearm chamberings, there are few that are as widely used by so many for so long as the German 9mm Luger and the American .45 Action Colt Pistol (or ACP for short).
These two chamberings, each introduced in the years leading up to the first world war and have no doubt faced each other countless times since (including in both world wars), have been compared and contrasted countless times as well, and the debate will likely continue as long as they exist.
But while much of the debate is based on personal opinion, some of it is indeed based on fact, and in this week's article, we will be trying to separate the two as much as possible for you.
So, which is better? The German wonder or the American classic?
Let's dig in!
First, a brief history
When it comes to understanding the usefulness of any invention, you must look at the history behind it and why it was invented, and firearm chamberings are no different- each was invented to fulfill a specific role, and if it did this well, it was adopted and kept around for as long as it was useful.
And, seeing as inventions with little relevance are not kept around for long, something must've been done right for these two cartridges to still be so widely used more than a century after their introduction.
In this section, we'll break this down in detail so you can understand more about these two fine cartridges.
A bit about the 9mm Luger...
The 9mm Luger can trace its origins back to 1901, when Georg Luger, an Austrian firearm designer working in what was then the German Empire, modified one of his existing cartridges designs to fit and function better with a toggle locking mechanism (that he also designed) in a then-unknown pistol with an angled grip.
In other words, his goal was simply to create a pistol round that functioned reliably in his weapon while also being able to put down a man quickly and with manageable recoil.
This gun was to eventually become the Luger P08- an iconic and elegant pistol that served Germany through both WW1 and WW2 and beyond, and the cartridge it fired was known as the 9mm Luger.
The 9mm Luger actually went through phases of widespread popularity and adoption twice- the first time was a result of being one of the first handgun chamberings used in the design of the then-revolutionary semi-automatic pistol (and later the submachine gun).
The second time was in the second half of the 20th century as the main chambering for the so-called "wonder nines"- high-capacity pistols often holding twice as many rounds as many other pistols of the era that had larger chamberings.
The round's popularity has only increased with the passage of time, and the 9mm Luger is, by most metrics, the most popular (including being the most widely used) handgun cartridge in the world today.
...And now the .45 ACP
The .45 ACP, on the other hand, was, from the get-go, renowned for its power, which is objectively (in most cases) greater than that of the 9mm luger from a physical standpoint, while also not being too powerful to shoot rapidly and accurately.
It too was created in the opening years of the 20th century, as the result of the work of legendary firearms designer John Moses Browning, who, like Georg Luger, revolutionized the firearms world not only with the introduction of his own cartridge but also with his iconic weapons and firearm designs.
He created the .45 ACP in response to a request from the U.S Cavalry in 1904, who needed a large, relatively powerful handgun round that could be fired in a semi-automatic pistol (as they were still equipped with revolvers at the time and needed to modernize their arsenal).
The resulting round he created became the .45 Action Colt Pistol, and in 1910, both it and the pistol he designed for it (the legendary M1911) where tested, tried, and adopted by U.S armed forces.
Although not nearly as popular as the 9mm Luger, the .45 ACP is also very widely used worldwide (although especially so in the United States) by both state and private users alike.
Things to consider
When it comes to comparing the two objectively and evaluating the two for your personal use, there are a handful of things you would need to consider.
Energy and wounding potential
For example, when it comes to raw power, .45 ACP might be a better option (I say "might" because while it's true that it usually is considerably more *physically* energetic than a 9mm round, the actual wound itself it'll create may or may not be more effective at putting down a threat, depending on the load, location of the hit, and multiple other factors).
The energy difference is notable- while the 9mm usually has about 300-350 foot-pounds of energy out of the muzzle, the .45 ACP regularly exhibits 400-500 foot-pounds of energy, and often more- some rounds have energy exceeding 600 foot-pounds behind them- considerably greater than the 500 or so foot-pound maximum of the 9mm Luger.
The 9mm, on the other hand, while smaller, can and does still produce fairly devastating wounds, although the difference in wounding potential between it and the .45 ACP has significantly narrowed over the years as bullet designs and construction have gotten more and more advanced.
Keep in mind, however, that more than one round would likely be required to take down whoever or whatever is attacking you- whether you're a cop, soldier, mom with her kids or John Wick.
So, regardless of which round you choose, you'll probably be pulling the trigger multiple times, and you definitely want to ensure all of your rounds hit their mark, which leads us to our next point of consideration...
Recoil
Like our last point, this is also a bit of a tricky one. While neither 9mm nor .45 ACP rounds are uncontrollable in rapid strings of fire by any means, shooting them feels noticeably different (at least in my opinion as well as that of probably plenty of others).
However, at least energetically speaking, we can again draw a distinction between opinion and fact- while it is my opinion that the two cartridges feel different, it is an objective fact that the .45 ACP almost always has more energetic recoil, due to the increased mass of the projectile, powder load etc.
The difference in recoil energy isn't really extreme, however (about 5.5 foot-pounds of energy for an "average" 124 grain 9mm load vs 8-ish foot-pounds for a fairly typical 230 grain .45 ACP load), although factors such as the exact bullet weight, velocity, and charge as well as the weight of the specific firearm also affect this.
However, as previously stated, it is an opinion of mine that 9mm recoil feels snappier than .45 ACP, and while it doesn't seem to affect accuracy hardly at all, it may be a bit intimidating for inexperienced shooters.
This isn't to say .45 ACP with it's more hefty recoil wouldn't be, but it feels somewhat gentler and smoother. It also operates at a lower pressure, which will help guns chambered for it by making them last longer because of reduced stress on critical parts.
Cost
Cost in another objective area where there's probably a clear winner- in terms of the price you'll pay for a box of these rounds, 9mm definitely has the win. They are usually pretty damn cheap- I've seen them for as low as 24 cents a round, although most will probably cost you between 35 and 90 cents a round.
.45 ACP is more expensive but still won't break the bank. I've seen them being sold for 40 cents a round, but the average is considerably higher- probably at least 60-70 cents per round on the cheap side and easily 1.50 or more for the more expensive stuff.
Bottom line is, if you want to save money, choose 9mm.
Availability
Here is another area in which 9mm definitely has an advantage. Any gun store you go too will probably have both, but the variety of 9mm will almost certainly be greater.
In fact, 9mm Luger, being the most common pistol-caliber cartridge on the planet, is also one of the most prolific cartridges of any kind on Earth- and in the United States, too, even as much as we love .45 ACP, 9mm is still the more popular cartridge by most metrics.
Other things to consider
Additionally, it should be noted that being physically smaller than the .45 ACP, the 9mm will usually fit more copies of itself into a magazine. For example, the Glock 21, which is chambered in .45 ACP, is roughly the same size as the Glock 17, which is a 9mm pistol, and while the Glock 21 holds "only" 13 rounds, the Glock 17 holds 17.
Not a huge difference, but something to consider nonetheless, since you can never have too many rounds in a gun.
A noticeable perk of the .45 ACP over the 9mm, on the other hand, is that it's usually subsonic, meaning the bullet it fires travels at less than ~320 meters (or about 1,050 feet) per second).
This is very important for people who want to put suppressors on their handguns, as it helps eliminate the very loud "crack" caused by the bullet breaking the sound barrier (however, even a shot from a suppressed pistol- regardless of caliber or bullet speed- is still loud enough to wake a whole house).
Pros and cons
9mm Luger pros:
Lower recoil than .45 ACP
Easier to find
Guns chambered in it will usually offer a significantly higher magazine capacity (unless it's a small gun like a subcompact single-stack pistol)
Generally, much cheaper
As it's more common, you'll likely find a greater variety of 9mm ammo compared to .45 ACP
9mm Luger cons:
Less energy (generally speaking) than .45 ACP
May wear out your pistol faster due to the higher pressure, especially with +P or +P+ ammo
Recoil impulse may feel noticeably more jerky and abrupt compared to .45 ACP (particularly with high pressure ammo) although certainly not unbearable and negligible overall
.45 ACP pros:
Hits like a truck- even non-expanding rounds have considerable stopping power owing to their greater surface area and increased kinetic energy
Lower pressure will increase the lifespan of your pistol
As it's usually subsonic, suppressing a gun chambered in .45 ACP might be easier
Recoil impulse feels gentler than 9mm despite being greater overall
.45 ACP cons:
Usually has a lower magazine capacity than a 9mm pistol (though many larger double-stack .45 ACP pistols can still hold 12 to 14 rounds)
Recoils slightly more
Is more expensive
Is harder to find
Conclusion and final thoughts
They are two of the most popular pistol calibers in existence and they each serve their original roles (and many others) perfectly well.
Aside from some differences in stopping power, cost, recoil and magazine capacity, both will fulfill the role of self-defense no questions asked, and they can both can be easily used in concealed carry pistols, duty pistols, pistol-caliber carbines etc., with only slight favorability going for one or the other depending on the exact situation.
Either way, these calibers aren't going anywhere anytime soon, so you'll probably have the rest of your life to decide which side in the debate you want to take. And besides, this essentially boils down to what you need, and even then, it's more opinion than fact.
In any case, you need to make the decision yourself in regard to which is right for you, and hopefully, we've now made it a little bit easier for you to make that choice!