Tarkov Ammo Chart (Patch 1.1, August 2026): Best Ammo Tier List by Caliber

Bottom line: post-1.1 Tarkov still kills with penetration power, not magazine size. Mid-raid lobbies wear class 4–5 plates; late kits push class 5–6. If your round cannot start penetrating that class in a short burst, you lose the trade.

Patch era1.1.0.0 · Season 1 Kord Breach

Raid focus5 core + new 5.8×42

Armor gateClass 4–5 common

Stats sourceAPI = wiki = interact

Armor in Tarkov is a stop-or-penetrate roll, not a flat damage sponge. Chance uses the plate's protection class (1–6), remaining durability %, and the ammo's penetration power. Failed pens still chip durability (armor damage %), so soft rounds can eventually open a plate — but you die first against fresh class 5–6.

Armor class	What you see in raids	Pen you usually want	Example rounds
Class 1–2	Early scav / soft armor	~15–25	Pst / soft FMJ
Class 3	Budget early PMC	~30+	PS / M855
Class 4	Default mid-raid plate	~40–45+	BP / M855A1 / M80
Class 5	Serious kits / bosses-adjacent	~50–55+	BS / M995 / M61 / MAI AP
Class 6	Top plates / late lasers	~55–62+	PPBS, M61/ M993, .338 AP

Wiki effectiveness scale (0–6): 4 = Effective (~3–5 shots before reliable pens), 5 = Very effective, 6 = Usually ignores. Our S–C tiers below mirror that for raid PvP, not scav farming.

1.1.0.0 note (Aug 3, 2026): BSG fixed ricochet settings for gear with armor points — vests, plate carriers, helmets and additional armor components. Ricochet behaviour can differ from pre-1.1 muscle memory; the penetration thresholds in this section are unchanged.

You can run dozens of chamberings. For most PMC kits these five cover early flea unlock through endgame:

Caliber	Why it matters	S-tier round	Budget workhorse
5.45×39	AK-74 meta, cheap guns, high RPM	PPBS Igolnik (62 pen)	BT / PP → BP
5.56×45	M4 / HK416 / MD platforms	M995 / SSA AP	M855 → M855A1
7.62×39	AKM punch, mid RPM	MAI AP (58)	PS → BP
7.62×51	DMR / battle rifle laser kits	M61 / M993	M80 / M80A1
9×19	SMG / pistol early & CQB	PBP (best 9mm)	Pst → AP 6.3

Honorable mentions: 7.62×54R (SVD/bolt — BS/SNB), 9×39 (VSS/VAL stealth), .338 Lapua (true class-6 delete, tiny ammo pool).

Stats = penetration / flesh damage / armor damage % from tarkov.dev GraphQL (Jul 12, 2026), matching the official wiki Ballistics table and live tarkov.dev/ammo filters. Tier = raid usefulness vs class 4–6, not scav DPS.

Caliber	Round	Pen	Dmg	Armor%	Tier	Role
5.45×39	PPBS Igolnik	62	37	59	S	Class 6 laser — scarce/expensive
5.45×39	BS	54	45	57	S	Default late AK AP
5.45×39	BP	45	48	46	A	Mid-raid class 4–5
5.45×39	BT	37	54	44	B	Budget tracer climb
5.45×39	PS	28	56	40	C	Early scav / class 3
5.56×45	SSA AP	57	38	58	S	Top 5.56 pen
5.56×45	M995	53	42	52	S	Standard endgame 5.56
5.56×45	M855A1	44	49	47	A	Best mid-tier buy
5.56×45	M856A1	38	52	44	B	Tracer mid kit
5.56×45	M855	31	54	37	C	Early unlocked NATO
7.62×39	MAI AP	58	53	76	S	AKM class 5–6
7.62×39	BP	47	58	63	A	Reliable mid-late
7.62×39	PP	41	59	57	A	Class 4 workhorse
7.62×39	PS	35	61	52	B	Budget AKM
7.62×51	M993	65	70	85	S	Absolute DMR top
7.62×51	M61	60	73	79	S	Default laser AP
7.62×51	M80A1	55	75	74	A	Strong mid-premium
7.62×51	M80	43	80	67	A	Budget DMR / class 4–5
9×19	PBP	39	44	55	A	Best 9mm vs armor
9×19	AP 6.3	30	52	48	B	Mid SMG AP
9×19	Pst	20	54	33	C	Legs / unarmored
7.62×54R	BS	70	72	88	S	Bolt/SVD delete
9×39	SP-6	48	60	64	A	Quiet class 4–5
12/70	AP-20	37	164	65	B	Slug AP CQB
.338 LM	AP	79	115	89	S	Class 6 one-tap fuel

Armor% = armor damage multiplier. Flesh damage drops as pen climbs — that is normal. Prefer pen when the lobby is plated.

Buy the cheapest round that still starts pens on the armor you expect. Overpaying for PPBS to farm scavs is how stash value evaporates.

Caliber	Budget (class ≤3–4)	Mid (class 4–5)	Top (class 5–6)
5.45×39	PS → BT	BP / 7N40	BS → PPBS
5.56×45	M855 / FMJ	M855A1	M995 / SSA AP
7.62×39	PS / FMJ	PP → BP	MAI AP
7.62×51	BCP FMJ / M80	M80A1	M61 / M993
9×19	Pst / M882	AP 6.3	PBP

Flea / trader note: top AP (PPBS, M995, M61, MAI AP, PBP) is often flea-locked, LL-gated, or both. Trader stock resets — if Peacekeeper/Prapor LL is low, run the mid column until unlocks catch up. Exact LL rows drift with patches; check in-game traders the day you buy.

Cheaper since 1.1.0.0 (Aug 3, 2026): trader prices were cut on 5.45×39 FMJ, 5.56×45 FMJ, 7.62×39 FMJ, 9×19 Green Tracer and .45 ACP Lasermatch FMJ, and several popular ammo types and magazines moved one Loyalty Level lower, so the budget rungs unlock earlier than the LL notes above assume. Pulling the other way: trader prices rose ~25% overall and the flea fee went 3% → 5%, so flea-sourced AP costs more than it did in July.

• 7.62×54R — bolt guns and SVDs. BS (70 pen) / SNB (62) ignore class 6; LPS/PS are the budget ladder.
• 9×39 — VSS/VAL. SP-6 (48) and BP (54) for quiet mid-late; SP-5 is early only.
• .338 Lapua — AP (79 pen / 115 dmg) is the chart ceiling for handheld rifles. Magazine size and cost keep it niche.
• 4.6×30 AP SX (53) / 5.7×28 SS190 (37) — PDW niches; AP SX punches above weight, SS190 is mid SMG AP.
• 12/70 AP-20 — best slug AP for shotguns; flechette shreds armor durability but needs pellet hits.
• 5.8×42mm — NEW in 1.1.0.0 (Aug 3, 2026), runs on the Norinco QBZ-191. DVC12 AP (49 pen / 46 dmg / 55% armor dmg) out-pens M995 (42) and PPBS (37) while trading ~7 flesh damage — on paper the hardest-penetrating intermediate-caliber round in the game. DBP191 is the general-purpose load (32 pen / 56 dmg); DBX95 and an AP tracer complete the family. Wiki-sourced while the tarkov.dev API is down, and BSG's 1.1 data is still being polished — verify in-client before committing a stash to it.

1. Identify the armor you will fight. Early questing → class 3–4. Customs/Streets mid → class 4–5. Labs/late → assume class 5–6.
2. Pick caliber from your gun, not vibes. Then climb the budget→mid→top ladder above until pen matches that class.
3. Load AP in the chamber / first 10–15 rounds if stash is tight; finish the mag with mid-tier. One failed pen stack loses the fight.
4. Don't confuse flesh damage with winning. QuakeMaker / RIP melt unarmored scavs and bounce off real plates.
5. Re-check after patches. Ballistics hotfixes happen — refresh this page's currentState or open tarkov.dev/ammo / the wiki Ballistics table.

Need raids cleared while you farm unlocks for M61/M995? Use the Tarkov CTAs below — same skill that matters on wipe day still matters on a persistent 1.0 profile.

1. Primary stats: tarkov.dev GraphQL ammo pulled Jul 12, 2026 (195 cartridges).
2. Live UI cross-check: tarkov.dev/ammo caliber filters (5.45 / 5.56) — PPBS 37/62, BS 45/54, M995 42/53, SSA AP 38/57, M855A1 49/44.
3. Wiki cross-check: Official wiki Ballistics — PPBS/M995/M61/PBP match API within rounding.
4. Patch freshness: official Patch 1.1.0.0 (Aug 3, 2026) launched the Seasons system and Season 1 “KORD BREACH” (live Aug 4). Read in full: no ballistics or penetration rewrite, so the numbers on this page still stand. It did add the 5.8×42mm caliber, cut five FMJ prices, move some ammo one Loyalty Level lower, raise trader prices ~25%, take the flea fee 3% → 5% and fix ricochet on armored gear. Prior 1.0.6.0 (Jul 3) was Expansion Hub prep + fixes, also no ammo changes. Wipe timeline via tarkov.dev wipe length.
5. Stale competitor note: Odealo ammo chart last updated Dec 2021 — useful for SERP structure only, not for August 2026 numbers.
6. New-caliber caveat (Aug 7, 2026): tarkov.dev’s GraphQL endpoint returned GraphQL server unavailable during this pass, so 5.8×42mm figures come from the official wiki (DVC12, DBP191), which warns that 1.1 data is still being polished. Every other caliber on this page is the unchanged Jul 12 API pull.

Tiers are editorial raid rankings, not an in-game label. Trader LL / flea locks are patch-sensitive — verify in-client before a big buy.