Two popular handgun cartridges that are known for their power are the 44 Magnum and the 500 Magnum. But there are many questions around each other these questions, such as which is more powerful? When would you want one cartridge over the other? Why would you want that cartridge? This article will cover all those questions and more so you know which cartridge is better and why.
Here is the short answer:
The 44 Magnum is better suited for bear defense because it is lighter and for hunting deer-sized game as it has less energy than the 500 Magnum. The 500 Magnum is better used for hunting larger game such as elk and is often considered to be too heavy to comfortably carry around in bear country.
Now that we have looked at the short answer, we can look at each cartridge, their ballistics, and see how they compare in-depth.
In-Depth Look at the 44 Magnum
The 44 Magnum cartridge was designed in the 1950s by Elmer Keith, who was a well-known firearms enthusiast and writer. The round was created to be a high-powered revolver cartridge that was capable of taking down large game.
The .44 Magnum is a rimmed cartridge, meaning that the base of the cartridge is larger than the rest of the case. This design allows the cartridge to be easily loaded and ejected from a revolver however, it also see much use as a lever action rifle cartridge and in the Ruger Model 77/44.
The .44 Magnum is a versatile cartridge that is suitable for a wide range of applications. It is commonly used for hunting, self-defense, and target shooting. The cartridge is particularly popular among hunters, as it is capable of taking down large game such as deer and elk but it is also popular as a bear defense cartridge as it is fairly lightweight and doesn’t kick as much has the heavier pistol cartridges.
Here is a ballistics chart of the 44 Magnum with a 240-grain soft point:
| RANGE (YD) | DROP (IN) | WIND DRIFT (IN) | VELOCITY (FPS) | ENERGY (FT-LB) |
| 0 | -0.9 | 0 | 1230 | 806 |
| 25 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1169 | 729 |
| 50 | 0 | 1.1 | 1117 | 665 |
| 75 | -2.1 | 2.4 | 1073 | 613 |
| 100 | -6.1 | 4.2 | 1035 | 571 |
| 125 | -12 | 6.5 | 1003 | 536 |
| 150 | -20.1 | 9.1 | 974 | 505 |
| 175 | -30.6 | 12.1 | 948 | 479 |
| 200 | -43.4 | 15.5 | 925 | 455 |
In-Depth Look at the 500 Magnum
The 500 Magnum was introduced in 2003 by Smith & Wesson and Cor-Bon and is designed for use in revolvers and single shot rifles. The 500 Magnum is no slouch of a round by any standard as it can launch bullets weighing as much as 500 grains.
However, there is a large downside to this cartridge. Because it is such a large cartridge, it will have a lot of recoil. For many, it takes a lot of shooting to get used to the recoil of this cartridge making it far less than ideal for smaller frame shooters.
The 500 Magnum is a powerful cartridge that is suitable for hunting large game like elk at close range. While this round is used by some for bear defense, it is often not used as it is a very heavy round to carry.
Here is a ballistics chart of the 500 S&W with a 325-grain soft point bullet:
| range (YD) | drop (IN) | wind drift (IN) | velocity FPS | energy ft-lb |
| 0 | -0.9 | 0 | 1450 | 1517 |
| 25 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 1357 | 1329 |
| 50 | 0 | 1.3 | 1272 | 1168 |
| 75 | -1.5 | 2.9 | 1198 | 1035 |
| 100 | -4.5 | 5.1 | 1134 | 929 |
| 125 | -9.2 | 7.9 | 1082 | 844 |
| 150 | -15.7 | 11.3 | 1038 | 778 |
| 175 | -24.2 | 15.1 | 1001 | 723 |
| 200 | -34.8 | 19.4 | 969 | 678 |
In-Depth Comparison
Due to the higher energy and the heavier bullets that the 500 Magnum has it is going to be a better cartridge for hunting large game animals and bear defense in situations where weight isn’t an issue like keeping a pistol in your car. The 44 Magnum, while it does have less energy, still can effectively take deer. The 44 Magnum is also a better bear defense choice where weight matters as 44 Magnums are lighter.
One very important thing to consider is recoil. The 44 Magnum has a far more controllable recoil than the 500 Magnum. Additionally, the 44 Magnum would be a better cartridge to use under stress as there is less to think about when you shoot.
Cost wise, the 44 Magnum costs about half of the 500 Magnum per round. This is mainly due to the popularity of the 44 Magnum and the fact that the 44 Magnum uses less materials.