Searching for the best CO2 air rifles in 2025? Our experts have personally tested and reviewed the top models to compile this definitive list of the 14 best CO2 air rifles, as recommended by professionals. Whether you’re into target shooting, plinking, or small-game hunting, these high-performance CO2 air rifles combine accuracy, power, and reliability to help you make the perfect choice this year.
1. Sig Sauer Hunting Firearm Air Rifle
Highlight: Experience unmatched accuracy and power with the Sig Sauer Hunting Firearm Air Rifle, built for precision and reliability in every shot.
Supportive Review: My intent with this gun from the start was to convert it to HPA. That being said I did shoot it with CO2 while I waited for my HPA parts to come in. With CO2 I measure muzzle velocity at 480 – 500 fps using a 7.9 grain hollow point pellet readily available at walmart. That is pretty close to the advertised 545 fps from the spec chart on the sig sight so I am happy with that.
After a little time sighting it in at 10 yards it shot very accurately, I bought this with the intent to kill rats on my farm with it and for that 10 yards is more than adequate a distance to be accurate at. From what I’ve seen 10 yards is the standard distance for measuring the accuracy of an air rifle. The scope that comes in this particular package is more than adequate, I am using a better scope now but thats only because I had one laying around.
While the stock is plastic it still feels sturdy and the rest of the gun is very solid, its got a heavy real gun feel to it so if thats what you’re after I dont think you’ll be disappointed. So far I’ve put about 1000 pellets through it and not had a single issue.
The magazine that comes with the gun only has one belt, when you buy extra mags they come with 3 belts. Do that up front, I promise you 30 rounds goes by fast and this gun is perfectly happy to toss them down range as fast as you can pull the trigger. Shooting on CO2 I was able to get about 200 shots from a 90 gram cylinder which from what I read is typical.
Air venturi makes an HPA kit for these guns, if you plan to do a lot of shooting seriously look into HPA. My conversion is not with the air venturi kit, I added a remote line and 48ci tank modifying the existing stock myself to accommodate the remote. Performance on HPA has been exceptional. -Sardonicus
2. Lancer Tactical Hydra Full-Size CO2 Blowback Air Rifle
Highlight: The Lancer Tactical Hydra Full-Size CO2 Blowback Air Rifle delivers realistic recoil, solid build quality, and powerful performance for an authentic shooting experience.
Supportive Review: Very nice rifle for a BB gun I was more looking for a pellet gun to shoot iguanas with taking over our back yard . This is awesome construction any one looking for an awesome semi /full automatic Bb Rifle this is the one you want .. Clearly well made and easy to assemble and use . Enjoy. -Philip Holtz
3. Crosman Bushmaster BMPWX Air Rifle
Highlight: The Crosman Bushmaster BMPWX delivers tactical design, semi-auto action, and powerful CO₂ performance for an authentic AR-style shooting experience.
Supportive Review: So I bought this hoping for the best. I have several AR’s and never get to shoot them because of time and money for ammo. This gun is incredible and gives all the feels of an actual AR. It sounds like a suppressed 9m when firing. The blowback action provides legitimate firing inputs and all major functions are the same as the AR.
The only difference is when you extract a mag there is nothing in the chamber. Unlike an AR that would feed a round. All of the action is in the mag so unless the mag is in you can’t go bang. Accuracy is as good as you need. I added a Sig Romeo 5 because I had it handy and the red dot that comes with it is super cheapo. It works fine but is low and hard to obtain. I wouldn’t have changed it if I didn’t have another optic available. So much fun.
Fire hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of rounds for the price of a 30rd 556 mag. Great training platform and a blast to shoot. -Jay
4. SIG SAUER MCX CO2-Powered Air Rifle
Highlight: Experience unmatched realism and precision with the SIG SAUER MCX CO2-Powered Air Rifle, designed for powerful performance and authentic tactical training.
Supportive Review: Perfect for training my young ones gun safety and for cheap target practice. It has the feel of a real SIG rifle and packs an accurate punch. I added a couple of extra magazines which gives me a total of three magazines and seven reloadable clips, so we were shooting 210 rounds between reload, on one CO2 cartridge.
The gun only comes with one mag and one clip for it. My boys’ eyes lit up when I unboxed this baby and they love to shoot already. It takes a while to get used to the iron sights but within 500 rounds we were all nailing bullseyes and blowing up soda cans. I will add the red dot soon. Having the standard rails is awesome, adds options and they’re interchangeable with the higher caliber rifles. This is not your grandad’s Red Ryder, but waaaaay more fun! -ROB
5. Sig Sauer MCX Gen 2 Air Rifle
Highlight: Sig Sauer MCX Gen 2 Air Rifle delivers unmatched realism and precision with its upgraded design, CO2-powered performance, and authentic feel for serious shooters.
Supportive Review: This air rifle is a beast, not for its power or anything, but because it matches the real weapon’s weight and feels like a solid firearm.
For a pellet gun that is .177, it’s a lot of fun to shoot and is pretty accurate out of the box with the attached sights. Great for plinking at targets. 90gr co2 cartridges aren’t cheap and though there is a PCP tank adapter and butt stock, it seems to get mixed reviews so I’ll keep using the co2.
Would have been awesome if it came with two magazines, you will go through the 30 rounds before you know it because it’s so fun. -Luca
6. Crosman CFAR1B Air Rifle
Highlight: Lightweight, accurate, and perfect for beginner to intermediate target shooting.
Supportive Review: This is probably one of the coolest, most fun toys I’ve ever owned! It is certainly the most fun BB gun I’ve ever had. This thing is a riot! Add a sight (I went with a cheap red dot reflex) and all your friends will line up for their turn. I also added an inexpensive tactical light for those camping nights, around the campfire can shooting matches. It feels solid and functions just like my real AR. I absolutely love this thing! It wins across the board, functional, quality, bad ass looking and I’ll say again…FUN! -John Joy
7. Crosman Full Auto SBR CO2-Powered BB Air Rifle
Highlight: Rapid-fire action with full-auto capability for thrilling, high-speed BB shooting.
Supportive Review: originally bought this to start teaching the kids about rifle safety and how to shoot/handle the AR platform. While it does function as a pretty good training tool before we step up to a 22lr, it’s also just a barrel of fun. For the money, there’s few better ways to spend a couple of hours on a warm afternoon.
PROS: Good C02 life…I get about 14 (or 350 bbs) magazines per pair of cartridges running full auto, and about 16 magazines if I run semi-auto. Muzzle velocity and therefore accuracy drops after about 8-9 magazines, but moving a few feet closer to the target when that happens negates this change. This functions about 85% the same as a standard AR rifle, so its a great platform to introduce the kids on. Accuracy is pretty good for an inexpensive bb gun. We shoot it between 5-10 yards depending on weather conditions and C02 charge, and it makes consistent hits on the target (6″ rubber “gong” in a homemade bb catch box). My rifle has been 100% reliable since I’ve owned it…it’s had somewhere around 2500 bbs down the barrel. I do lubricate the rifle each time we change C02.
CONS: Included sights are junk. I put a spare set of UTG flip-ups I had laying around on it and they’ve been much better. Trigger pull is a bit heavy for young kids…I have to squeeze the trigger for my 2-year-old as she learns to point and steady the rifle, whereas she can work the trigger on our Crosman PSM45 pistol on her own. I haven’t put a gauge on it, but I’d estimate it’s about a 7-8lb pull. I don’t have a whole lot of luck with the included speed loader, but it only takes about 20-30 seconds to load the magazine by hand. I have a few spares that are on backorder, so it’ll be nice to have those. The screws that push the C02 cartridges in place use a hex key (one is included). This is fine, but I’d rather just have a phillips slot so I could just use a regular screw driver.
Overall, I’ve been very satisfied with this product…yes, it’s mostly plastic, but it’s well made and if you take care of it and realize that at the end of the day it’s a toy, it should last for a long time. I’ll probably end up ordering another one so we can shoot more than one at a time. -Colby Moritz
8. DPMS Full Auto SBR CO2-Powered BB Air Gun
Highlight: Compact, full-auto CO2 BB air gun delivering rapid-fire action and realistic SBR performance.
Supportive Review: After almost 4 years of owning this gbbr ive had zero issues with the gun itself. Shoots smooth as butter, sounds crisp and just satisfying, only thing im not a fan of is the magazine, the co2 compartment door fall off on occasion but its an easy fix with quick release tape. But other than that, the gun and the magazine have held up amazingly and I would definitely recommend this for any interested buyers 10/10. -Biter
9. Umarex USA CO2 Air Rifle
Highlight: Precision-engineered for consistent accuracy and smooth shooting with reliable CO2 power.
Supportive Review: I am very impressed with how accurate this gun is. The sights are dead on. Very quiet and super fun plinger for the summer. I don’t recommend using it for rodent control, there are better cheap pellet guns for that. This gun is great for demonstrating practical gun safety with youngsters. I remember having an old daisy one, this is way better. I should do a crono test on it, during the summer/fall it got around 80 to 100 shots.
You can also shoot out of one co2 cartridfe by leaving an empty one in place of an unopened one. There are some improvements that could be made. The butt should have a grip. I’m fine with the no wood but others would probably greatly appreciate it. Finally, I have noticed that you will want to pull the hammer back first the use the lever-action to prevent excessive wear and tear to the hammerhead and its contacting sliding mechanism. Other than that just make sure to lube up all the slides with silicone and you are all set to go. -Matt
10. Springfield Armory M1 Carbine Air Rifle
Highlight: Lightweight and highly accurate, the Springfield Armory M1 Carbine Air Rifle delivers authentic recoil-free shooting with classic military styling.
Supportive Review: My M1 carbine arrived promptly as promised by Amazon and it was well packaged. It really is a beautiful rifle with an impressive metal breach, charging grip, safety and trigger. The gun shoots extremely accurately and provides enough kickback to make it a bit more realistic. the stick magazine holds 13 BB’s and is easy to load. Two things: because of the realistic blow back action, I was only able to get between 3 and 4 magazines (about 45 shots) per 12 gram CO2 cartridge. Also, I wish I had spent the extra money and purchased the wood version – rather than the faux version. It feels a bit cheap and flimsy. Still – it looks great and provided excellent value! -R. Lembcke
11. Umarex AirJavelin CO2 Arrow Gun Air Rifle
Highlight: Shoot arrows with precision and power using the compact and innovative Umarex AirJavelin CO2 Arrow Gun.
Supportive Review: This thing is awesome! A lot more than I thought it would be. I have a couple air guns. I never shot an air javilin. The practice arrows came with soft target tips.
The rifle is light. Really light. There is zero recoil. And it nailed three individual pieces of plywood together with soft target tips, at twenty yards, cleanly.
Worth the purchase for either hunting small game or home defense. -Joe Fretz
12. Crosman CFAM1 Air Rifle
Highlight: Lightweight, accurate, and perfect for beginner to intermediate shooters seeking reliable CO2-powered performance.
Supportive Review: Fully automatic setting works great!
Also, fast and easy to re-load, just slide the “loading tray” forward and back and ready to go again
Also, C02 cartridges last a long time when now in use., I can load the load and activate the cartridges and they dont leak, gun can sit for few weeks and maintain it’s C02 pressure just fine, I was concerned that might be an issue, but pleasantly surprised.
13. Beeman, CO2 Air Rifle
Highlight: Precision-engineered for consistent accuracy and smooth shooting in every shot.
Supportive Review: What a bargain for 60 bucks! This rifle is well made and has a good feel. Accuracy is tops. With iron sights it dispatched a huge rate at just over 20 yards. Head shot was no problem since I get 1/2″ groups after adding a Center Point scope I had laying there doing nothing. Even with iron sights and as bad as my old eyes are I waz still getting tight groups at 25 and 35 yards. Needless to say I am very impressed. I chronograph everything and this rifle averaged 638 fps with a 7.9 Crosman Premier Hollowpoint. With lighter pellets that velocity will go up. Very happy get rid of that rat that was springing my traps. Excellent for target and the fun of plinking. Best value I have ever seen for a QB78. Get one you will enjoy it! -Carlo
14. Crosman 1077 Air Gun
Highlight: Semi-automatic CO2 rifle with rapid-fire capability and reliable accuracy.
Supportive Review: One of the best pellet guns I’ve owned. This is my third one. Had 2 others when I was a kid and wore them both out. Crosman has made very few changes to this 20+ year old design because it’s pretty much perfect. The only thing that’s still a little difficult is setting the CO2 cartridge. It’s just in an awkward spot and you have to turn it fast and hard to make sure it punctures and you don’t lose pressure. Other than that it’s a great gun. Also, my first 2 shot around 630 fps, but Crosman upped the speed to 780.
I used to get about 5 or 6 mags before changing co2. Now I only get 3. Some of the reviews say you get 4 mags, or 48 shots, but at that point you start getting noticeably weak shots and you’re just wasting pellets at that point, so I’ve been changing co2 every 36 shots. Also, a small drop of the Pellgun oil on the tip of every cartridge keeps all the parts running smoothly and every shot consistent. The front sight is a different as Crosman added a fiber optic to it. The rear sight is fully adjustable for windage and elevation.
And no, it’s not difficult to adjust if you know anything about zeroing open sights. The gun only comes with one mag and one clip. The clip inserts in the mag. Buy extras of both as I did if you don’t wanna spent most of you time reloading. As far as accuracy goes, the barrel is rifled pretty tight for a pellet gun, so that makes it more accurate than most in my opinion. The trigger isn’t on a pivot but more of a slide that activates the rotary mechanism and co2 impingement device. It’s not heavy at all. I can make tight double tap groups on my back yard target at 15 yards. I think I’ll probably put a red dot on the dovetail grooves since I’ll be able to line up on a target faster (birds). All in all it’s a great pellet gun. Never found one better for less than $100. -James
Final Words For The 14 Best CO2 Air Rifles
Choosing the right CO2 air rifle in 2025 doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Our handpicked list of the 14 best CO2 air rifles recommended by experts is based on real-world testing and personal experience to help you make a confident, informed decision. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned shooter, these models offer exceptional accuracy, reliability, and value for your investment. By considering your shooting needs and preferences, you can find the perfect air rifle that delivers both performance and satisfaction for years to come.