The .50 caliber is a well-known caliber among gun enthusiasts, and two of the most popular 50 caliber cartridges are the 50 BMG and the 50 Action Express (AE). While both cartridges share the same caliber, they are very different in terms of their intended use and performance capabilities.
Here is the short answer:
The 50 BMG is a powerful and long-range cartridge primarily used in heavy machine guns and sniper rifles, while the 50 AE is a high-powered pistol cartridge mainly used for hunting in large game and target shooting.
Now that we have looked at the short answer, we can look in-depth at each cartridge, their ballistics, and see how they compare in-depth
In-Depth Look at the 50 BMG
The 50 BMG was developed in the early 1900s as a cartridge for the Browning Machine Gun (BMG). This cartridge is mainly used by militaries worldwide generally in vehicle-mounted machine guns or for long range sniping where you need the bullet to pierce through a heavy barrier.
The 50 BMG does have its disadvantages when compared to other cartridges. The 50 BMG has a very significant amount of recoil that very few shooters can shoot for extended periods without issue. Additionally, the cost of both a 50 BMG rifle and ammunition is very expensive and hard to find.
Here is a ballistics chart of the 50 BMG with a 750-grain Hornady A-max bullet:
| range (YD) | drop (IN) | wind drift (IN) | velocity FPS | energy ft-lb |
| 0 | -1.5 | 0 | 2820 | 13242 |
| 50 | -0.2 | 0.1 | 2774 | 12810 |
| 100 | 0 | 0.4 | 2728 | 12389 |
| 150 | -1 | 0.8 | 2682 | 11980 |
| 200 | -3.2 | 1.4 | 2637 | 11582 |
| 250 | -6.6 | 2.1 | 2593 | 11194 |
| 300 | -11.4 | 3 | 2549 | 10816 |
| 350 | -17.4 | 4 | 2505 | 10448 |
| 400 | -24.8 | 5.3 | 2462 | 10091 |
| 450 | -33.6 | 6.7 | 2419 | 9742 |
| 500 | -44 | 8.3 | 2376 | 9403 |
In-Depth Look at the 50 AE
The 50 AE was developed in the late 1980s as a high-powered cartridge for the Desert Eagle pistol. The 50 AE is often regarded as the most powerful pistol cartridge that is mass-produced. Not only is it an impressive pistol cartridge, when put into a rifle you would see impressive results from how small of a cartridge it is.
The 50 AE is a round commonly used to hunt big game or for plinking. it is often considered to be too big of a pistol round for sell defense and has too much recoil to shoot targets for long periods of time with. However, for those who want to hunt game like elk or moose with a pistol, this would be the cartridge you would want to do it with.
Here is a ballistics chart of the 50 AE with a 300-grain soft point bullet:
| range (YD) | drop (IN) | wind drift (IN) | velocity FPS | energy ft-lb |
| 0 | -0.9 | 0 | 1550 | 1600 |
| 25 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 1451 | 1402 |
| 50 | 0 | 1.1 | 1361 | 1233 |
| 75 | -1.2 | 2.7 | 1278 | 1088 |
| 100 | -3.8 | 4.8 | 1205 | 967 |
| 125 | -7.9 | 7.5 | 1142 | 869 |
| 150 | -13.6 | 10.8 | 1090 | 791 |
| 175 | -21.1 | 14.7 | 1046 | 729 |
| 200 | -30.6 | 19 | 1009 | 679 |
In-Depth Comparison
While both these rounds are 50 caliber, they are very different. The 50 AE is a pistol cartridge that is best used within 100 yards while the 50 BMG is generally used for shooting beyond 1000 yards. The 50 BMG will also cost more per round than the 50 AE. Not to mention that the 50 AE is after all a pistol cartridge and the 50 BMG is a rifle cartridge.
Even though these two cartridges are the biggest in their respective class, they are not two rounds easily compared as the 50 AE is used primarily in pistols while the 50 BMG is primarily used in long range shooting rifles and machine guns.