I realized I hadn't considered costs in my original blog about deer hunting with an AR-15, so I decided to include that here. Some people have a hunting rifle equipped with a single magazine and shoot 5 round through it a year. For them, the cost of magazines and ammunition is inconsequential. Other people shoot their hunting rifles regularly and keep multiple magazines on hand, for them, the cost of those consumables are worth consideration.
The first chart is magazine cost, the second is ammunition cost, the last is combined costs based on caliber. Prices are accurate as of the date of this posting, I will be pulling from sources like SGAmmo.com, Midway USA and Shooters Pro Shop when possible. They are all reputable companies that I have done business with regularly. Of course as calibers come in and out of vogue, prices may change so keep that in mind if you are reading this in 2022. For magazines I am including both standard capacity magazines and reduced capacity magazines, as many jurisdictions have magazine limits of 5 or 10 rounds for hunting.
| Cartridge | Mag Brand | Capacity | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| .223 Remington | C-Products | 30 | $9 |
| .223 Remington | AR-Stoner | 5 | $13 |
| 6.5 Grendel | AR-Stoner | 25 | $15 |
| 6.5 Grendel | AR-Stoner | 5 | $15 |
| 6.8 SPC | AR-Stoner | 25 | $15 |
| 6.8 SPC | AR-Stoner | 25 | $15 |
| 300 Blackout | C-Products | 30 | $9 |
| 300 Blackout | AR-Stoner | 5 | $13 |
| 7.62 x 39 | AR-Stoner | 30 | $15 |
| 7.62 x 39 | AR-Stoner | 10 | $15 |
| 450 Bushmaster | AR-Stoner | 5 | $28 |
Magazine prices aren't terribly different, except for 450 Bushmaster. You can certainly spend more on premium magazines for each of these options, but the prices listed is for the lower end of what is considered reliable. C-Products may even beat the AR-Stoner magazine prices if you shop somewhere that carries them. As you see, the .223 and 300 Blackout are the cost leaders. The other cartridges are similar, with the 450 Bushmaster being the most expensive. Due to the size of the 450 Bushmaster cartridge, the standard capacity magazines only hold 5, which is just fine for hunting.
Affordable plinking ammo cost:
| Cartridge | Plinking Ammo Cost | Type |
|---|---|---|
| .223 Remington | $0.30 | FMJ |
| 6.5 Grendel | $0.30 | Steel case FMJ |
| 6.8 SPC | $0.60 | FMJ |
| 300 Blackout | $0.50 | FMJ |
| 7.62 x 39 | $0.20 | Steel case FMJ |
| 450 Bushmaster | n/a | n/a |
Premium hunting ammo cost:
| Cartridge | Hunting Ammo Cost | Type |
|---|---|---|
| .223 Remington | $1.10 | Barnes VOR-TX |
| 6.5 Grendel | $1.00 | Hornady A-Max |
| 6.8 SPC | $1.30 | SSA Accubond |
| 300 Blackout | $1.00 | Barnes TSX |
| 7.62 x 39 | $0.85 | Federal Powershock |
| 450 Bushmaster | $1.25 | Hornady FTX |
In hunting ammo there isn't much of a difference. Premium components just cost around a buck a round or more, the cartridge doesn't matter as much. Where we see the big difference is with the plinking ammo. It's not available at all for 450 Bushmaster. It's more costly for 6.8 SPC and 300 Blackout. 6.5 Grendel has a significant advantage here, but keep in mind that is for steel cased ammo. Some people prefer to avoid steel cased ammo. If you remove that, then .223 is the leader by a long shot. Almost all ammo in 7.62 x 39 is steel case, only premium hunting ammo isn't in general. But if we consider steel case ammo, 3 of these options are much cheaper to shoot than the others, with 450 Bushmaster being the outlier again.
So let's look finally at two sets of costs. One is for someone who only hunts with their rifle. They have 2 hunting capacity magazines and shoot 10 rounds a year- enough to sight in their rifle and take a single shot at a deer. The second category is for a person who wants to shoot their rifle regularly. We will budget them for 2 reduced capacity magazines, 4 standard capacity magazines and 250 rounds a year, 20 hunting rounds and 230 plinking rounds. Using those numbers, we will see what the 10 year operational cost is for each.
| Cartridge | Hunting Only | More Use |
|---|---|---|
| .223 Remington | $235 | $972 |
| 6.5 Grendel | $220 | $950 |
| 6.8 SPC | $277 | $1,704 |
| 300 Blackout | $216 | $1,412 |
| 7.62 x 39 | $201 | $730 |
| 450 Bushmaster | $303 | $3,308 |
As we can see, 450 Bushmaster is only moderately more expensive for occasional use, but radically more expensive to shoot a lot. So if you already have an AR platform gun for general training and want to add a rifle for deer hunting, 450 Bushmaster is a solid choice. If you are looking for one rifle for use for hunting and frequent training, then something like 6.5 Grendel looks like a better choice when costs and terminal ballistics are considered.