Best Long-Range Rifle Scopes – Buying Guide

September 25, 2022

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Today’s arms market is filled with hundreds of adds advertising different kinds of rifle scopes. Nevertheless, when it comes to the point of choosing the only one, most people cast doubt upon it. Long-range rifle scopes are no exception.
Below you can find a list of features worth paying attention to when you are about to buy a scope for your long-range rifle:

CvLife Optics Hunting Scope
Our Rating 4.0
587 Reviews
Magnification: 6-24x
Objective Diameter: 50mm
Field Of View: 28 ft @ 100 yards
Illuminated Type: Red and Green

U-ZM Rifle Scopes for Hunting
Our Rating: 5.0
7 Reviews
Magnification: 6x-24x
Objective Diameter: 50mm
Field Of View: 3.98-16.24 @ 1000 yards
Illuminated Type: Green & Red & Blue

Vortex Optics Crossfire II
Our Rating: 4.5
43 Reviews
Magnification: 6x-24x
Objective Diameter: 50mm
Field Of View: 17.3-4.4 feet @ 100 yards
Illuminated Type: Red

The quality of the glass is the most significant thing you need to consider. It is not a secret that a sharp glass will help you see objects clearer even at lower magnification, which is extremely important in long-distance hunting. Most people undervalue this factor mainly due to the price policy (the difference between “good” and “bad” quality glass can run up to 1000$). However, buying a rifle scope with a low-quality glass is likely to become just a waste of money.
The reticle type also matters. There is a number of different reticles, but the one you should choose for a long-range hunting certainly must have evenly spaced dots or clear marks along the vertical and horizontal axis (in mils or MOA). The reticles that will serve your needs for sure are, for example, Mildot or Nightforce MOAR.
Zoom Range/Power is another feature to focus your attention on. It is generally accepted that a long-range shooting demands at least 18x magnification. It means that the scope can magnify the object 18x more times than your naked eye is able to see. In questions of hunting, the low end of the zoom range occurs to be important too. You need to be sure that the lens will be adjustable for situations when the target comes up much closer than during the usual game shooting for a long distance. The ideal variant for your long-range rifle is probably 5-25x magnification (it is available in so-called variable rifle scopes).
Elevation Adjustment Range is one more factor that just means the amount of adjustment a rifle scope allows internally. When talking about a long-range shooting, the larger values are recommended (at least 100 MOA/27.3 mil of elevation adjustment).
Scope’s turrets can make your hunting much easier, but this works not with every rifle scope. Nowadays lots of scopes, particularly those of low to mid-range ones, have a Mildot reticle, but, surprisingly, MOA adjustments, which makes no sense and will not help in making a shooting process more enjoyable. Be thoughtful for buying a Mildot reticle with turret adjustments in mils. And vice versa, if you are going to purchase a MOA reticle, the turret adjustments must be in MOA.
The last point to consider in our list is the Focal Plane. Reticles of long-range rifle scopes are usually placed either on the front focal plane or the second one (in other words, a reticle is set in front of the zoom or behind it). In the case of the front focal plane scopes, the reticle occurs to change size while adjusting the zoom (zooming in makes it bigger, zooming out – smaller). The thing is that in some situations the reticle is able to obscure the target or make it hard to see, which leads to wrong and uncomfortable aiming. However, front focal plane scopes have an advantage – the lines of the reticle always stay the same relative distance apart. As you have probably understood, the second focal plane scope reticle always remains the same size.

Having a high-quality long-range rifle scope with a great magnification range and other significant features makes it much easier to shoot at long distances successfully hitting any wishful target. Below you can find a list of the most popular long-range rifle scopes for the money!

Review of the best long-range rifle scopes

BUSHNELL ELITE TACTICAL G2 6-24×50 FFP RETICLE ERS RIFLE SCOPE

All the scopes in the line of Elite Tactical Riflescopes manufactured by Bushnell were designed with a feedback from law enforcement and military experts, providing the best optical precision and accuracy in any tactical shooting situations. Moreover, all rifle scopes feature Ultra Wide Band Coating to increase brightness and Rainguard HD lens coating, which guarantees to have a sharp image despite any weather factors (including fog).

Things to consider about the Bushnell Elite Tactical 6-24×50 Rifle Scope:

The rifle scope has the greatest magnification range in the line of all elite tactical rifle scopes developed for mid-range and long-range shooting (6-24x magnification capability).
The scope offers one of the highest light transmission rates. In addition, it has fully multi-coated optics for the best viewing.
The rifle scope features a mil-hash marked reticle (set in the first focal plane, changes its size when zooming) enabling a holdover and windage correction.

VORTEX CROSSFIRE II 6 – 18×44 AO RIFLESCOPE DEAD-HOLD BDC

The Vortex Crossfire II is the second completely redesigned version of the original Crossfire rifle scope. This scope offers the best performance and accuracy at a surprisingly low price.

Its main advantage is fully multi-coated lenses (with anti-reflective coatings), which provide first-class light transmissions, resulting in bright views and a low glare.

The scope features Dead-Hold BDC reticle, which is quite similar to a Mil-Dot one, however, has hash marks (instead of dots) for estimating windage and holdover.

Besides, the scope objective was made adjustable for easy corrections and a parallax error reducing.

Vortex Crossfire II is very dependable and has a shockproof construction, which helps withstand the heaviest recoils. Removable lens covers and a dust cloth are included for free.

The absence of mounts and a bit poor eye relief can be referred to disadvantages of the rifle scope discovered by some customers.

Buy on-line on Amazon!

Leupold Mark AR 6-18×40 Mil-Dot Rifle Scope

Here is another perfect mid-priced long-range rifle scope manufactured by the Leupold company. This scope is highly qualified regardless its price range.

Advantages Leupold Mark AR possesses:

The sharpest optics featuring Multicoat 4 lens coating system that increases the amount of the light reaching your eyes.
Variable 6-18x magnification.
A second focal plane Mil-Dot reticle, which remains the same size regardless of the magnification.
This scope will work on any rifle, all you will need is to buy a proper turret for your specific caliber.

The disadvantage of the scope lies in the absence of lens covers.