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Rifle Ammo

.223 Remington Ammo

In stock from $0.49 / round · 17 of 26 products available now

Loaded to lower pressure than 5.56 NATO and safe in every 5.56 chamber, so it is the one cartridge here that never requires you to check the barrel first.

In stock today

Cost per round
$0.49 to $1.78
7 Brands
Barnes, Federal, Fiocchi, Frontier, Hornady, Remington, Winchester
Bullet weights
55, 62, 68, 73 grain
Pack sizes
20, 50, 150, 200, 250, 500, 1,000 rounds
Learn more about .223 Remington

At a glance

Also known as
.223 Rem, .223 Remington
Common bullet weights
40, 55, 62 and 77 grain
Typical use
Varmint rifles, bolt-gun precision, AR-15 range use
Before you buy
A 1:12 twist barrel will not stabilise heavy match bullets. Match the bullet to the twist
Age to purchase
21+ (the federal licensed-dealer minimum for ammunition suitable for a handgun, applied as TAS policy)

.223 Remington is the commercial cartridge that 5.56 NATO was developed from, loaded to a lower SAAMI pressure standard and chambered in everything from bolt-action varmint rifles to AR-15s. If your barrel is marked .223 Remington and nothing else, this is the ammunition you buy: .223 is safe in every 5.56 chamber, so it is also the cartridge that never requires you to check. Its natural home is precision at short and medium range: light, explosive varmint bullets out of a fast bolt gun, and match bullets out of a rifle with the twist to hold them.

What to know before buyingCommon questions

Before you buy

What to know about .223 Remington

What people buy it for

  • Varmint and predator hunting from a bolt-action rifle
  • Precision and match shooting at 100 to 600 yards
  • AR-15 practice where the barrel is .223-marked
  • Ranch and pest control

The .223 / 5.56 relationship, stated plainly

.223 Remington and 5.56 NATO share external case dimensions but not pressure specification or chamber geometry. .223 in a 5.56 chamber: always safe. 5.56 in a .223-only chamber: not safe, because the shorter .223 throat puts the bullet into the rifling sooner and drives pressure up. If your rifle is marked .223 Rem, buy .223 Rem. A .223 Wylde chamber is a hybrid that safely takes both.

Bolt-action varmint rifles are often slow-twist

Traditional .223 sporters and varmint rifles frequently have 1:12 or 1:14 twist barrels, which is perfect for 40 to 55gr bullets and cannot stabilise heavy ones. That is not a defect; it is what those rifles were designed to shoot, and light bullets at high velocity is exactly the varmint recipe. Check the twist before you buy heavy match ammunition for a bolt gun; the barrel will usually tell you.

Varmint bullets and match bullets are not the same thing

A polymer-tipped varmint bullet is built to come apart on impact with something small. A match hollow point is built to fly consistently and is not designed for terminal performance at all. Neither is a hunting bullet for anything larger. Buy for the job: thin-jacketed frangible bullets for pests, match bullets for paper and steel, controlled-expansion bullets if you are hunting anything where the shot has to count.

Bulk .223 and semi-automatic rifles

Inexpensive bulk .223 runs fine in an AR, and because it is loaded milder than 5.56 some rifles are slightly under-gassed with it: a rifle set up on hot 5.56 may run dirtier or short-stroke on the cheapest .223. If you have an adjustable gas block, this is what it is for. Otherwise it is simply worth testing a box before the case arrives.

Questions

Common questions

What is the actual difference between .223 Remington and 5.56 NATO?

Two things: pressure and chamber. 5.56 is loaded to a higher pressure standard, and the 5.56 chamber has a longer leade (the unrifled space ahead of the case mouth), which lets pressure build more gradually. Fire the higher-pressure round in the shorter-throated chamber and you stack one against the other. .223 in a 5.56 chamber is always safe; 5.56 in a .223-only chamber is not.

Will heavy 69 or 77 grain bullets work in my rifle?

Only if the twist rate is fast enough. 1:8 or 1:7 handles them; 1:9 is marginal; 1:12 and 1:14 (common on older bolt-action varmint rifles) will not stabilise them and the groups will show it as keyholing or wild fliers. The twist is normally stamped on the barrel. Match the bullet to the barrel, not to the price.

Is .223 legal for deer hunting?

It depends entirely on where you are. A number of states set a minimum bore diameter, case length or energy for deer, and .22 centerfires fall below it in several of them. Check your state wildlife agency's current regulations before planning around it, and if it is legal, use a bullet built for controlled expansion on game rather than a varmint or match bullet.

Is steel-case .223 worth it?

It is the cheapest way to shoot volume and works in most semi-automatic rifles, at the cost of more fouling and non-reloadable cases. The real constraints are external: many indoor ranges prohibit steel case, and bi-metal jacketed ammunition is magnetic and should stay off close-range steel targets. It is not match ammunition and does not pretend to be.

How much does .223 Remington cost per round?

.223 Remington runs from $0.49 to $1.78 per round in stock right now. Every price on the page carries its cost per round beside it, so the comparison is one glance rather than arithmetic.

Is it cheaper to buy .223 Remington by the case?

Usually, yes. We stock .223 Remington from 20 rounds up to 1,000, and the cost per round beside each price is what shows whether a particular case actually beats the box. It is not automatic: a discounted box sometimes wins.

Which brands of .223 Remington do you stock?

Barnes, Federal, Fiocchi, Frontier, Hornady, Remington and Winchester are in stock in .223 Remington today. Stock changes as the feed runs, so the list on the page is the current one.

What bullet weights does .223 Remington come in?

The .223 Remington in stock runs 55, 62, 68, 73 grain. Weight changes how the round feels and where it prints more than most shooters expect, so it is worth matching what you already shoot.

Is .223 Remington in stock?

17 of the 26 .223 Remington products we list are in stock right now. Out of stock items stay on the page rather than disappearing, so a link you saved still works and you can see what normally sits here.

Related calibers

Further reading