Best Crossbows for Hunting

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Best Crossbows for Hunting

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How to Pick a Great Hunting Crossbow

Looking for the best crossbow for hunting? A crossbow can be a fun and practical investment for anyone who loves to shoot or hunt. But finding the best crossbow to buy can be a daunting task. So we put together this list of the top ten crossbows on the market. Before we jump to the crossbow reviews, here are a few key things to look for when shopping.

Best Crossbows for Hunting

Velocity: The velocity is measured in feet per second or FPS. This number is determined by max draw weight, draw length, and the release method. This number will give you a good idea of how fast the bow’s bolts will fly.

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Draw Weight: This spec is all about speed. The heavier the draw weight, the straighter and faster your arrow will go when shot. Compound crossbows tend to have a higher draw weight than recurve crossbows.

How to Pick a Great Hunting Crossbow

System: Is it a compound or recurve crossbow? Compound bows usually utilize levering systems to up draw weight and make for faster shots. Recurve bows are the simpler, but they are usually also a bit louder when firing.

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Colors: What colors does the bow come in? Some will be camouflaged for hunting, while more decorative bows might be painted brighter colors. The best hunting crossbows will be camouflaged to help keep you hidden.

Best Crossbows for Hunting

Scope: Does it come with a scope? Some crossbows come as a package, giving you everything you need to get started. Some bows let you pick your own sights or scopes instead of coming as a bundle.

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Warranty: Make sure your bow is covered! Buying a bow can be difficult, but having a warranty on your investment will give you a little more peace of mind. A good crossbow will come with the warranty to back it up.

Top 10 Products

Ready to see the best crossbow brands? All right, let’s do this! Below you’ll find our recommended top pick and budget pick. Both of them are fantastic products. If you want even more options, the top 10 crossbow reviews below will guide you. Happy hunting!

CenterPoint Sniper 370

CenterPoint Sniper 370
The CenterPoint Sniper 370 is the compound crossbow of your dreams. It has an amazing draw weight of 185 pounds and can fire a bolt at 370 feet per second. It features some cool integrated string tech that makes your shot as quiet as possible. It makes the CenterPoint, in our opinion, the best crossbow for deer hunting (and any other hunting). It features an illuminated scope that will help to make those shots even more accurate. The Sniper 370 is built of machined aluminum, making it light and still sturdy. We love that the tactical stock and forearm are completely adjustable. But one of our favorite parts is the amazing 5-year warranty. Who doesn’t love a great warranty for an awesome product?
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Barnett Compound Crossbow

Barnett Compound Crossbow
Want the best crossbow for the money? It’s hard to pass up an amazing product for a great price, and the Barnett Compound Crossbow is definitely both of those. We already loved Barnett for some of its other products and decided to take a look at their crossbows too. With a draw weight of 130 pounds, the Barnett fires at 300 feet per second. It’s fast, sleek, powerful, and inexpensive. This crossbow is built for smaller-framed enthusiasts but is great for anyone who loves the sport. This amazing deal also comes with a five-year warranty. The Barnett comes with a quiver, three arrows, a compact red-dot sight, and a cocking device. Hard to beat a great deal on the best affordable crossbow and all of these amazing extras!
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SA Sports Empire Beowulf

SA Sports Empire Beowulf
The SA Sports Empire Beowulf shoots at a stunning 360 feet per second with 175-pound draw weight. This amazing crossbow is made in the US. It’s very light; the stock is built from lightweight synthetic material that is strong and durable. All in all, the crossbow weighs only about ten pounds. It comes with a scope, but it is not the best quality. If the scope had been a little better, this crossbow might have been our top pick! But you don’t buy a crossbow for the accessories; you buy it for power, accurate shots, and dependability. And the SA has all of these! So if you’re looking for the best compound crossbow, make sure to give this one a try.
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Carbon Express X-Force

Carbon Express X-Force
Looking for the whole shebang? Here’s the best value crossbow package we could find. And what a deal it is! The super light, 7-pound crossbow shoots at 315 feet per second with over 90 pounds of kinetic energy. It’s incredibly accurate to 60 yards. The SilenTech coating on the strings make them as silent as possible when firing. It also has an anti-dry-firing technology integrated to help prevent damage to your bow. And it’s fully customizable. But that isn’t the best part. It also comes with some pretty sweet accessories, including three 20" PileDriver Bolts and a 4x32 scope. If you are in the market for a sweet bow with some amazing accessories, then make sure to check out the Carbon Express X-Force!
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Wicked Ridge Invader G3

Wicked Ridge Invader G3
Want a good crossbow that is lighter than air? The Wicked Ridge Invader G3 weighs in a mere 6.6 lbs, which makes it the lightest Wicked Ridge crossbow on the market. It’s one of the lightest crossbows we’ve ever seen. So if you want the best crossbow on the market that weighs next to nothing, then you’ll want to check out this one. It won the Outdoor Life Great Buy Award, and for good reason. The Wicked’s self-retracting ACU-52 rope-cocking system reduces draw weight while still maintaining accuracy. And it’s safe too! The bow is designed to keep your fingers out of harm's way while also helping to prevent dangerous dry firing. We love this bow for its superior performance that isn’t changed by how little it weighs. This is a great bow for nearly anyone, no matter their frame or level of experience.
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Southern Crossbow Revolt 370

Southern Crossbow Revolt 370
If you want power, the Southern Crossbow Revolt 370 has power! With 185 pounds of draw weight, this camouflage crossbow fires at up to 370 feet per second, making it one of the fastest crossbows on this list. The Revolt also features a reinforced stock made of composite material, an aluminum rise, and fiberglass split limbs making it lightweight (just 8 pounds!) and durable. The scope included with the Revolt is a 4x32 scope built for crossbows. It will make firing at 60 yards much more accurate. This sweet crossbow also features an integrated hand guard, safety glasses, and an anti-dry-firing mechanism to keep you as safe when firing. We also love that the Revolt is easy to assemble and comes with fantastic instructions to get you started. Even if you’ve never shot a crossbow before, Southern Crossbow will show you how!
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Barnett Outdoors Ghost

Barnett Outdoors Ghost
If there is one thing we love about Barnett products, it’s their devotion to safety. The Ghost, just like all of the other Barnett crossbows, features a great 5-1 safety and trigger system and anti-dry-fire tech. It’s also very lightweight because of their Carbon Lite Riser system that shaves whole pounds off of the weight. While it is a little louder than some of the other bows, we found that it makes up for that in speed, precision, and deadly accuracy. You’ll also get the 5-year Barnett warranty, which covers any manufacturing or workmanship defects. This crossbow is a little more expensive than some of the others on this list, but we couldn’t resist including it. Barnett makes some great products, and this one is no exception!
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Arrow Precision Inferno Fury

Arrow Precision Inferno Fury
Our first recurve on this list! If you are just mad about recurve crossbows and their rugged simplicity, the Arrow Precision Inferno Fury is the one for you. We found that this recurve is the best crossbow for deer hunting because of its lightweight body and easy action. While the bolts in a recurve won’t fire with the speed of a compound crossbow, the Inferno Fury more than makes up with its other attributes. The camo pattern covers nearly the entire thing, making it less likely you’ll be spotted by your deer. This crossbow makes an excellent gift for anyone who is trying to get into crossbow hunting; it comes ready to rock with four 16” quality bolts, a quiver, a free extra string, and a three-dot sight to get you started. So if you’re looking to try something new, check out the Inferno Fury. You’ll see why it’s so popular with its customers.
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Killer Instinct KI350 Crossbow

The Killer Instinct KI350 is a crossbow with a lot of amazing features. Its sleek, solid black body is attractive. It comes with a quality, blue/green Rheostat multi-reticle scope, three crossbow bolts, a quiver, and string suppressors. At only 6.5 pounds, it’s amazing light. We love the silent grip that keeps every shot as quiet as possible. That makes it an amazing bow for hunting! However, it’s not the impressive power or the lightweight design of the Killer Instinct KI350 that makes it so enticing. Oh no, it’s the lifetime warranty! We love a great product that is backed for a lifetime; you know that this bow is well-made and ready for just about anything.
The Killer Instinct KI350 is a crossbow with a lot of amazing features. Its sleek, solid black body is attractive. It comes with a quality, blue/green Rheostat multi-reticle scope, three crossbow bolts, a quiver, and string suppressors. At only 6.5 pounds, it’s amazing light. We love the silent grip that keeps every shot as quiet as possible. That makes it an amazing bow for hunting! However, it’s not the impressive power or the lightweight design of the Killer Instinct KI350 that makes it so enticing. Oh no, it’s the lifetime warranty! We love a great product that is backed for a lifetime; you know that this bow is well-made and ready for just about anything.
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Prophecy Pistol Crossbow

Want something that’s a little more fun? The Prophecy Pistol Crossbow has you covered! The pistol grip on the crossbow and self-cocking mechanism makes shooting fast, simple, and fun. This pistol crossbow is a break action, semi-automatic weapon that is always ready. While you probably can’t down a deer with this baby, it works great for small game and fun target practice. It even features a quality, tactical red-dot scope to help you land more shots even at a distance. There’s a reason the Prophecy is highly rated; it’s compact, light, fast, and it’s an absolute blast. If you’re in the market for a pistol crossbow, you can’t go wrong with Prophecy Pistol Crossbow!
Want something that’s a little more fun? The Prophecy Pistol Crossbow has you covered! The pistol grip on the crossbow and self-cocking mechanism makes shooting fast, simple, and fun. This pistol crossbow is a break action, semi-automatic weapon that is always ready. While you probably can’t down a deer with this baby, it works great for small game and fun target practice. It even features a quality, tactical red-dot scope to help you land more shots even at a distance. There’s a reason the Prophecy is highly rated; it’s compact, light, fast, and it’s an absolute blast. If you’re in the market for a pistol crossbow, you can’t go wrong with Prophecy Pistol Crossbow!
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About the Author

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Kimberly Graf

Expert Researcher and Writer

Kimberly Graf is a researcher and writer for GeekWrapped.com. She covers kitchen, cooking, and home products.

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Article last updated on:

September 30, 2019

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TOP PICK

CenterPoint Sniper 370

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