Looking for the 11 best hunting bows in 2025 to elevate your accuracy and power in the field? Whether you’re a seasoned hunter or just stepping into archery, choosing the right bow can make all the difference in your performance. In this guide, we’ve rounded up our top 11 hunting bows for 2025, carefully selected for their cutting-edge technology, reliability, and user-friendly design. From lightweight compound bows to high-performance recurve options, you’ll discover which models stand out this year—helping you make an informed decision before your next hunt.
1. Sanlida Dragon 10 Flagship Bow
Highlight: Experience unmatched precision and speed with the Sanlida Dragon 10 Flagship Bow, engineered for serious hunters who demand top-tier performance.
Supportive Review: This is not a beginners bow.
If you are looking for your first bow, I would HIGHLY recommend the Dragon x8. It is beginner friendly and also is a spectacular bow at a spectacular price.
The Dragon 10 is a total success! SANLIDA really knocked it out of the park again! The hybrid cams are much more aggressive in the power stroke. This increases the weight and the time the arrow is in acceleration. This is what establishes the arrows speed. This comes at a price, and that is you are drawing more weight through the full draw cycle. The limb stops provide a solid back wall. The valley is short, but that is adjustable by relaxing the limb stops 1/2 a step. Don’t adjust this too far, or you might over rotate the cams and they will not return. This is a dangerous condition with any bow.
The Dragon 10 is not a light weight bow, mine weighs in at 6 pounds complete with sight, rest & stabilizer. That being said it’s not uncomfortable or out of balance. Actually the weight is very well placed and I find it is far more steady than my other bows of 4-5 pounds.
The fit and finish is top notch and the customer service is excellent! Sanlida is very easy to work with and they are very helpful. One of my cables had a blemish in the serving and they sent me a new full set of cables and string immediately. Thank you Evelyn!
The Dragon 10 is a very capable hunting bow. It is compatible with all of the modern bow hunting accessories and even has mounting locations for the 2 piece quiver systems. It also has a dedicated mounting location for limb driven drop away rests. The riser has inset dampeners top and bottom. Details like these are usually only found on bows starting at twice the price.
This bow is a solid contender, at an unbeatable price!
If you are hunting large game, this bow will serve you well at a price that leaves room for accessories and arrows! -Andre
2. Diamond Archery Edge XT Compound Bow
Highlight: Experience unmatched versatility and accuracy with the Diamond Archery Edge XT Compound Bow, designed for smooth draws, adjustable settings, and consistent performance for hunters of all skill levels.
Supportive Review: I’ve been shooting for over 40 years. I’ve shot pretty much everything at this point, and I’m telling you right now, you won’t find a better compound at this price point. Ok, if you’re very tall or have long arms, it might not be the best fit but it pulls like butter, and after several hundred shots, nothing is lose it wiggling. The hardware is metal and machined beautifully. The cams are absolutely top end, which is a highlight for this bow. Diamond always delivers value and a realistic cost.
Switch out the site, don’t attach the quiver, and I’d normally say ditch the octane biscuit and stabilizer, for something higher end, but they’re actually pretty decent.
5 out 5 all day! -Frank Fanelli
3. Sanlida Dragon X9 Bow
Highlight: A versatile, high-performance hunting bow designed for precision, smooth draw, and exceptional value for both beginners and seasoned archers.
Supportive Review: Overall this is a very nice bow. With all the accessories that are included it’s really a good buy.
Pros: Great riser, good limbs with dampeners, decent sight, D-loop installed and nicely set-up, very easy to adjust Draw length and draw weight without bow-press.
Cons: Arrows are weird and don’t work with the included arrow rest. The 4″ fletching jams into the rest. On the positive side the support center for Sanlida immediately responded and sent me 12 new arrows with shorter vanes (3″) and they moved the vanes 1/2″ closer to the nock. Great service! I was still able to use the 4″ vanes by flipping the rest to the front of the riser.
I had to modify the rest: the brushes were way to close to each other and had to be ground off on a belt sander, now the arrows glide nicely past the rest. I don’t use the quiver, arm sling, the stand and I use my own palm-release. All in all the bow is well built and a good value. -Karl B
4. Sanlida Archery Dragon X8 RTH Compound Bow
Highlight: The Sanlida Archery Dragon X8 RTH Compound Bow delivers pro-level performance with adjustable draw lengths, smooth shooting, and a ready-to-hunt package at an unbeatable value.
Supportive Review: As someone who shot Hoyt recurve bows for over 30 years, I was initially skeptical about trying a compound bow, especially one at the budget-friendly price of the Sanlida Dragon X8. But after reading positive reviews, I decided to give it a shot—and I’m so glad I did!
The Dragon X8 far exceeded my expectations. The build quality is impressive, especially considering the $199 price tag. The bow comes with everything you need to start shooting, and all the components are solid and reliable. The sight, for example, performs much better than you’d expect for this price range, holding its own against higher-end models.
Even as a complete beginner to compound archery, I was able to shoot with surprising accuracy right out of the box. The bow is smooth, forgiving, and feels great in the hand. It’s the perfect choice for anyone new to compound archery or looking for a quality bow without spending a fortune.
To top it off, Sanlida’s customer support is exceptional—quick, helpful, and always ready to answer questions. This bow made me confident enough to eventually upgrade to their Hero 10 II, but I still recommend the Dragon X8 for its unbeatable value and performance.
Whether you’re starting out or looking for a budget-friendly option, the Dragon X8 is a fantastic choice. Highly recommend! -Allan Grossmann
5. Bear Archery Limitless Dual Cam Compound Bow
Highlight: Experience unmatched versatility and smooth, powerful shots with the Bear Archery Limitless Dual Cam Compound Bow, designed to grow with archers of all skill levels.
Supportive Review: Comes set up out of the box at 50# draw and 28″ draw length. this was fine me but not my son. It has the typical adjustable cam system as most bear bows. No bow press needed for adjusting drawlength or draw weight. Currently have it set up for my son at 24″ draw length and maxed at around 30 # draw weight.
A important note for beginners is that as you shorten the draw length for smaller archers know that the draw weight max will go down signifantly. I also had an issue with the factory peep sight. I replaced it with a tube style peep for my son due to his shorter draw legnth. I was able to turn the poundage all the way down and replace peepsight without a bow press. Over all I give this bow a 5 star rating due to its price point and quality. -Justin
6. SAS Pioneer 68″ Longbow Traditional Wood Long Bow
Highlight: The SAS Pioneer 68″ Longbow combines classic traditional wood craftsmanship with smooth, powerful performance for an authentic archery experience.
Supportive Review: This is a great longbow. I had purchased this bow in 55# right hand approximately 3 years ago and it has performed very well. It is my main go to bow replacing my 3 recurves. Yesterday I purchased yet a second one in 55# so that I can rotate between the two every other month. I have been shooting traditional archery for over 15 years and shoot almost every day weather permitting. It seems to really like carbon arrows spined at 400-340 with a 175gr point. Well made and a good price. And yes if the need should arise I would buy again. -Tomm
7. AF Archery Tatar Recurve Bow
Highlight: Experience unmatched speed and accuracy with the AF Archery Tatar Recurve Bow, a lightweight, traditional-style bow designed for powerful performance and smooth shooting.
Supportive Review: Strong, good-looking, well made bow at an affordable price (I got mine for $129 in June of 2024). The bow is sold as black, but in the sunlight you can see it is almost brown, which I like. It also was listed as a 45 pound bow at 28 inches. Honestly, I do not draw this bow to 28, so I do not get the 45 pounds of draw. I draw it to 22-23″, and get between 33-36 pounds of actual draw weight.
That said, even with the shorter draw, I was able to get consistent 155-160 fps shots through the chronograph. So it is a fast, hard-hitting bow. I like short bows and the asiatic horse bow is one of my favorites. This is a great bow for recreational shooting, small game hunting, and shooting competitions including horse archery. For big game, I would get a heavier drawing bow so I would be sure to have enough power with a shorter draw. I don’t think this manufacturer makes a bow over 50 lbs. -Taylor
8. TOPARCHERY Black Hunter Traditional Recurve Bow
Highlight: A sleek, high-performance recurve bow designed for exceptional accuracy, durability, and smooth shooting for both beginners and seasoned archers.
Supportive Review: I really love this bow. It’s beautiful, exactly as pictured, lightweight and shoots very smooth. Mine did not arrive prestrung and was a bit difficult to string due to the deep recurve style but not impossible. I’ve only shot with it for a few hours so I can’t make any comments on its durability yet, but it feels sturdy.
The string does make a noise when pulled back (I think some other buyers thought they were hearing a cracking sound) but it’s definitely the string rubbing against the wood. I’m not a hunter, so I don’t care about the noise. The string itself seems like it’s very good quality and has a wonderful twang to it. (Update: I rubbed some plain beeswax into the string loops and it no longer makes a noise when drawing back.
You can get a small block of pure beeswax from your local honey grower or health food market. I paid $1.99 ea.) Accuracy depends on many factors that have more to do with arrow quality and archer ability, so I think it’s inappropriate to rate the accuracy of the bow. I’m very happy with my purchase. Prime shipping was on time. I got many compliments at the 3D shoot. -Joanne H
9. Black Hunter Takedown Recurve Bow
Highlight: Precision-engineered takedown design for easy transport and customizable performance.
Supportive Review: I searched for an entry level bow for quite some time. I watched a lot of videos and read reviews and finally settled on this one. It was a great balance of price point, design and style for me. I wanted a takedown recurve that looked great and shot great. So I finally got this one and I am very happy with it. Some people may have pieces come in damaged or warped but that’s no different than a defective product at Walmart, things happen. I didn’t have any of those issues.
I twisted my string 30 twists and strung the bow, let it sit over night and shot it the following day. After about an hour of shooting I had to twist the string another 10 twists to maintain the riser height and re-snug the limb bolts but that’s to be expected with it being new and getting broken in. I am using no sights, shooting by feel. This bow has made that quite easy as it shoots consistent for me. I use it for target and for hunting, I got the 45lb draw. Lightweight, looks great, shoots great. Everyone that sees it thinks it was more expensive than it was. Thanks guys. -Christopher Horton
10. Bear Archery Brave Bow Set
Highlight: Perfect for beginners, the Bear Archery Brave Bow Set combines a lightweight design with easy-to-use features for a fun and safe archery experience.
Supportive Review: I’m am big into archery and purchased this bow to get my 8 year old daughter into it also. This bow is perfect for her. Turned it down to 15 pounds and took it to bass pro to have nocks added. The nocks keep the finger savers in place and must be it the right location at all times. Bass pro did this for free and also verified the drawn weight by putting it on their scale. It was not easy for her to pull back at first, but she is slowly developing the necessary muscles.
First day she shot 4 arrows and got tired. Next couple days about 10 arrows. She’s now up to about 20 arrows after one week of practice and consistently hitting the target. She isn’t using the sight. I’m preparing her for bowfishing which typically doesn’t use sights. I believe it’s called instinct shooting. I would highly recommend this bow! -James
11. TOPARCHERY Archery 56″ Takedown Hunting Recurve Bow
Highlight: Durable 56″ takedown design offering customizable limbs for precision and portability in every hunt.
Supportive Review: I ordered this bow after reading all the reviews. I really did not expect much. I was really surprised when I got it. I shoot recurve and have for about 12 years now. ..this bow was bought to keep in my truck.
Easy to assemble..pay attention to the limb markings.. the limbs may look similar but they are not the same. It comes with a really bad arrow rest but you can buy a better one. I shoot off the shelf and liked the way this bow shot. .Fairly quiet, and the 45 lb draw I bought waa really
45 lbs..often thats not the case with budget bows fro. Overseas. Using feather fletched easton gamegetter 500 and cammohunter 2016… they work great with the bow.I can definitely see myself picking up another one..great budget bow.
Just an update as I have had the bow a few years now. All is still well with it. For its cost I think its a solid value. For kicks I reread the 1 star reviews and see alot of them are from people new to Archery. The dings about the arrow rest for instance.. folks nobody that shoots recurve bows ends up staying with cheap plastic arrow rests… the one here is to get you started.. research options and find what you like. The few reviews with broken limbs reported.. these limbs are well made. Be very careful you have the bow stung properly and use a bow stringer. You can string a recurve bow without a stringer but unless you know what you are doing you can easily damage your limbs.
Happy shooting. -WesArr
Final Words For The 11 Best Hunting Bows In 2025
Finding the right hunting bow can make all the difference in your accuracy, comfort, and overall experience in the field. Our list of the 11 Best Hunting Bows in 2025 highlights top-performing models trusted by hunters for their precision, durability, and innovation. Whether you’re a beginner looking for a budget-friendly option or an experienced archer seeking advanced features, there’s a bow here to fit your style and needs. By comparing specs, draw weights, and user reviews, you can confidently select the perfect bow for your next hunt. Investing in one of these top picks ensures you’re equipped for success—and ready to elevate your hunting game this season.