page_title: Ballistic coefficient
section_title: General trends
hierarchical_section_title: Ballistic coefficient / Bullet performance / General trends
caption_attribution_description: English: The bullet on the left is blunt tipped, and has a low ballistic coefficient (BC). The bullet on the right is more aerodynamic and has a higher BC.
context_page_description: In ballistics, the ballistic coefficient of a bullet is a measure of its ability to overcome air resistance in flight. A high BC means the object will slow down less. It will have more of its speed left when it reaches the target. BC depends on mass, diameter, and drag coefficient. Ballistic coefficient has units of lb/in² or kg/m². BCs for bullets are normally stated in lb/in² by their manufacturers without referring to this unit. The values for BC can be as low as 0.12 and as high as 1.00 for commonly used bullets.
context_section_description: Sporting bullets have BC’s in the range 0.12 to slightly over 1.00, with high being the most aerodynamic, and low being the least. Very-low-drag bullets with BCs ≥ 1.10 can be designed and produced on special lathes using mono-metal rods. These special bullets often have to be fired from custom made full bore rifles with special barrels.
  
  Bullet makers often offer several weights and types for a given size.  Heavy-for-caliber pointed (spitzer) bullets with a boat tail design have high BCs. Lighter bullets with square tails and blunt noses have lower BCs. 
  In the United States, hunting cartridges such as the .25-06 Remington (a 6.35 mm caliber), the .270 Winchester (a 6.8 mm caliber), and the .284 Winchester (a 7 mm caliber) are used when high BCs are desired.
  In the larger sizes, the .338 Lapua Magnum and the .50 BMG are popular with very high BC bullets for shooting beyond 1000 meters. They have very high BCs. Other choices in the larger size are the .375 and .408 Cheyenne Tactical and the .416 Barrett.
caption: The bullet on the left is flat tipped and has a lower BC than the bullet on the right, which is more aerodynamic.
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "", "Image Make": "SONY", "Image Model": "DSC-H3", "Image DateTime": "2011:12:04 21:27:31", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image ExifOffset": "192", "Image PrintIM": "[80, 114, 105, 110, 116, 73, 77, 0, 48, 51, 48, 48, 0, 0, 2, 0, 2, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0, 0, 0]", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/40", "EXIF FNumber": "7/2", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "200", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2011:12:04 21:27:31", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2011:12:04 21:27:31", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "3", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "29/8", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "63/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3264", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2448", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal"}