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When you own a firearm that fires 9mm ammo, you need to ensure that the ammo you purchase fits your firearm correctly. There are some things to understand to ensure you get the correct ammo, but most modern 9mm firearms can use standard 9mm or 9mm Luger ammo.

9mm Ammo

The most common 9mm ammo available is the standard 9x19mm centerfire cartridge. It may be called 9mm, 9mm Parabellum, 9mm Nato, or 9mm Luger, but the ammunition uses the same cartridge, powder load, and bullet size. 

The ammunition is considered universal in modern 9mm firearms, though there are some designs that feed and eject better in different guns because of the shape or style of the bullet and brass. A standard 9mm ammo using a solid lead bullet with a copper jacket is often the best performing round in the gun, but may not deliver energy to the target as well as a semi-jacketed or hollow point bullet. 

When considering ammo, start with a single box to test the rounds for jams, feed issues, or poor ejections. Once you find the 9mm ammo that works best in your firearm, you may want to buy and store some to ensure you have it on hand if supplies become low.

Bargain Ammo

Some 9mm ammo brands are less expensive, and most still work well in most modern firearms. If you are considering buying ammo like this to save money, it is a good idea to test it first.

The bullet and cartridge still need to fall within the standard parameters for the ammo to be considered 9mm, 9mm Luger, 9mm Nato, or 9mm Parabellum, so the cost savings often come down to bullet design and the casing used. Inspect the cartridges carefully when you purchase them to ensure the quality is good, and if they work well in your gun, you can buy larger lots and store them for later. 

9mm Ammo Variants

There are a couple of 9mm ammo variants that you need to watch out for. The 9mm Browning is a 9x17mm round, and the 9mm Makarov is configured as 9x18mm. These rounds are similar to standard 9mm ammo, but the casing is shorting in both types, so they can not interchange with standard 9mm ammo options.

The Makarov and Browning ammunition is not very common, so as long as you check the markings on the ammo boxes, you can avoid confusion. The name on the package may not be clear, but all standard 9mm ammo is marked with 9x19mm no matter what the manufacturer calls it and will fit a modern handgun, rifle, or semi-automatic weapon chambered for the 9x19mm cartridges. For more information on 9 mm ammo, contact a professional near you.