If you close your eyes and imagine yourself following a well-trained bird dog through an autumn field, there’s a good chance the shotgun you’re carrying in this daydream is a fine-looking over/under. But you’ll also find O/Us on clays ranges everywhere from the local club to the Olympics. The over/under is a proven platform that’s used to produce high-end competition guns and gorgeous field guns alike.
Unfortunately, beauty comes at a price. Even though a majority of modern O/Us are made by CNC machines, they are often more expensive than pumps or auto-loaders. The good news is there are a wide variety of O/Us at multiple price points. The best over/under shotguns are costly, but there are also inexpensive options that will get the job done all the same, just with a bit less style. For this story I am focusing, along with my fellow Outdoor Life editors, on more attainable O/Us — though we’ve also included a few high-end options as well.
Best Over/Under Shotguns
Best Overall: Browning Citori 825
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Pros
- Sweet shooter
- Excellent handing
- Fine workmanship
Cons
- A bit pricey for an everyday hunting gun
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12 to .410 -
Weight: 7 pounds, 4 ounces -
Overall length: 45.75 inches (28-inch barrel) -
Barrel length: 26 and 28 inches -
Stock: Gloss oil finish Grade II/III walnut -
Chokes: F, M, IC -
Price: $3,000
The 825 is our favorite iteration of the Citori yet. It’s offered in a variety of trap, sporting clays, and field configurations and in 2026 it will be offered in sub-gauges as well. We tested the standard field version in our 2025 Shotgun Test and it wowed the test team, taking home our Editor’s Choice award.
“Compared to the Citori 725, another gun we like, it has a modernized look and more elegant and refined components, specifically the top lever and safety/barrel select. The 825’s stock has a softer, more rounded profile, where the 725 lines are more angular and defined. Which looks better is purely a matter of personal taste,” OL shooting editor John B. Snow wrote about the gun in our 2025 shotgun test. “We also liked the 825’s simple adornment, with a grouse on one side and pheasant on the other.”
I later hunted with the shotgun and found that it carried and swung just as beautifully as it looked. In terms of price, performance, and aesthetics, it will be tough to find a modern over/under that is better than the Citori 825.
Best Sporting: Beretta DT11
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Pros
- Excellent patterns
- Championship pedigree
- Superb performance on the range
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12 -
Weight: 8 pounds, 9 ounces -
Overall length: 49.5 inches (32-inch barrel) -
Barrel length: 30 and 32 inches -
Stock: Left-hand options available -
Chokes: F, IM, M, IC, C -
Price: $11,420
American skeet shooter Vincent Hancock has won a record four gold medals with Beretta shotguns, including the DT11 Black. And since it’s the shotgun of choice for the best skeet shooter of all time, it gets the nod as the best over/under gun for clays. A carbon-fiber rib allows shooters to add length to the barrels without adding weight. Hancock used to shoot 28-inch barrels, but bumped up to 30s in the DT11. A longer barrel set can help keep your swing on track, and if you like more weight in the front of your over/under, you can use the included rib weights to find the proper balance. Beretta’s Steelium Pro barrels, used in the Italian gunmakers’ high-end double guns, come standard as do five Optima chokes.
DT stands for “detachable trigger.” You can drop the trigger out by opening the action, aligning the lever with the safety, pushing the safety forward to expose a black dot, and moving the lever to the right. Detachable triggers have crisper trigger pulls—the DT11 breaks at 3½ pounds—and it’s easier to clean and adjust trigger weight. The cross-bolt action of the DT11 is 3mm wider than its predecessor, the DT10, giving it a stronger lock up so it can hold up even after tens of thousands of shotshell ignitions. Beretta offers a variety of different stocks for the DT11 so that shooters can experience a more custom fit. —Joe Genzel
Best Mid-Priced Sporting: Fabarm Elos N2
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Pros
- Great value
- Excellent barrels and chokes
- Adjustable comb
Cons
- Some may not like enamel decoration
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Gauges: 12 -
Weight: 8 pounds, 4 ounces -
Overall length: 49.5 inches (32-inch barrel) -
Barrel length: 30 and 32 inches -
Stock: Oil-finished walnut with an adjustable comb -
Chokes: IM, M, IC, SK -
Price: $3,680
If the DT11 is a little too rich for your blood, consider the Fabarm Elos N2. Longtime gun writer Phil Bourjaily picked this shotgun as his top O/U for sporting clays. “The gun has TriBore barrels and Fabarm’s house-made Exis choke tubes with a unique curved inner geometry in place of the usual conical/parallel choke design,” Bourjaily wrote. “From a totally anecdotal standpoint, I can say that this gun hits targets hard, and that Fabarm has long been known for its barrels and chokes. The N2 RS is an offshoot of the N2, with weight added via denser wood, a solid mid-rib and a bulkier forend. It’s made for shooters who prefer more heft to their sporting gun, where the standard N2 is for those who prefer their gun to be more nimble.”
Best for Upland Birds: Ruger Red Label III
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Pros
- Made in America
- Very light and nimble
- Handles wonderfully
Cons
- No engravings on receiver
Key Specs
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Gauge: 20 -
Barrel Length: 28 and 30 inches (tested) -
Overall Length: 47.5 inches -
Weight: 6.59 pounds (measured) -
Stock: Walnut -
Five screw in Tru-Choke style chokes included (SK, IC, M, IM and F) -
Price: $2,720
In 2026 Ruger is resurrecting its popular Red Label line with the III. This slender O/U is being made for Ruger by Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing Company and, in my opinion, it’s the best Red Label yet. This version of the Red Label has simple yet thoughtful features. The dark stock (black American walnut and Turkish walnut) is attractive, but not so fancy that you’ll feel bad about putting scratches in it. The wood sits proudly above the receiver, as it should. The stock has a neutral cast and a wonderfully slender Prince of Wales style grip.
I’ve hunted ducks and pheasants with the gun and I’ve found that it’s perfectly balanced for carrying on long hunts in the uplands. The longer 30-inch barrels help you swing through targets. And true to the Red Label history, it’s chambered in 20 gauge and made in America. Read my full review of the Red Label III here.
Most Versatile: Beretta 686 Silver Pigeon
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Pros
- Relatively affordable
- Excellent do-it-all shotgun
Cons
- Safety requires adjustment
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12, 20 -
Weight: 7 pounds, 2 ounces (12 ga) -
Overall length: 46 to 48 inches -
Barrel length: 26, 28, 30 inches -
Stock: B Fast, European Walnut -
Chokes: F, IM, M, IC, C -
Price: $2,449
The Silver Pigeon is considered to be Beretta’s working man’s over/under. It’s a solid competitor to the Browning Citori and whether you prefer one or the other really comes down to personal tastes. The modern version of the gun comes with a silver (of course) receiver that has nice laser engraved floral patterns. It’s a pretty, modern O/U with features like Beretta’s Steelium barrels and B-FAst stock system built in.
Executive editor Natalie Krebs carried the 686 Silver Pigeon across sage flats and up rugged plateaus out West this season with good results. “In the past, I’ve opted for lighter guns that are easier to carry at altitude, but whose whippiness proved costly when it came time to shoot,” she says. “I much prefer the easy swinging and quick handling of the Silver Pigeon, which came through for me on tougher shots, including a hard left-to-right crossing hun and another that pulled a U-turn, forcing me to spin and shoot on a steep slope.
My only critique is that the tang safety is too stiff out of the box and its ergonomics — a bulge rather than a groove — don’t help matters, gloves or no. It was fine if I had advanced notice of impending shooting over a point, but it cost me a chukar when my Lab flushed a surprise single that flew straight away — a rare chip shot. Too bad I was fighting the safety and never got the shot off. Fortunately, it’s something a quick trip to the gunsmith should resolve, which I’ve done in the past for another Beretta with the same issue.”
Best Mid-Priced: Franchi Instinct Sideplate
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Pros
- Attractive yet durable over/under suited for hard use in the field
- Cheaper than the Citori and Silver Pigeon
Cons
- Ejectors didn’t always work as expected on our test sample
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12, 20 -
Weight: 7 pounds, 7 ounces (12 ga) -
Overall length: 46 to 48 inches -
Barrel length: 28 inches -
Stock: AA grade satin walnut -
Chokes: IC, M, F -
Price: $2,149
This is an attractive Italian over/under that represents a solid value. Its wood is dark and rich, the color case-hardening on the action is well executed, appealing gold-inlay hunting scenes on either side are augmented with engraved scrollwork and borders, and the top lever is sculpted with fine cuts.
It shoots well, too. The Sideplate has an automatic safety that also functions as a barrel selector that operates smoothly with no slop or uncertainty. It comes with extended choke tubes to tune the degree of constriction to the shooter’s preferences, and our sample (chambered in 12 gauge with 3-inch chambers and 28-inch barrels) did a good job breaking clays.
The only real issue we had with the shotgun was inconsistent ejection. At times it wouldn’t pop empties free from their chambers, which is a bit of a nuisance if not a fatal flaw. Even so, for a shotgun at this price, that cost it points in the reliability category.
Best for Duck Hunting: Mossberg Silver Reserve Eventide
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Pros
- Reliable duck gun
- Swings nicely
- Handles recoil surprisingly well
Cons
- Has extractors not ejectors
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12 -
Weight: 7 pounds, 5 ounces (12 ga) -
Overall length: 45.5 inches -
Barrel length: 28 inches -
Stock: Synthetic, camo -
Chokes: C, IC, M, IM, F -
Price: $846
I shot the Mossberg Eventide on a duck hunt in Maine and found that it shines brightest under the very worst conditions.
On those frigid, salty mornings the semi-autos that other hunters were using started to jam up, but my over/under just kept running. This Turkish-made shotgun’s hefty weight and good balance helped me swing on passing sea ducks, dropping bird after bird. This shotgun was at home among the rocks and saltwater, but I wouldn’t mind using it as a late-season goose gun or a designated boat gun (which are meant to be beat to hell). It handled the recoil of heavy duckloads surprisingly well. The sling studs on the barrel and stock are a nice feature for duck hunters.
During range testing we did have one glitch with the gun that affected its reliability score. When opening the gun, it is possible to unlock the lugs without pushing the top lever over fully. When this happens, the top lever will not click into its open locked position, meaning the locking bars in the receiver will prevent the action from closing.
My only other issue with the shotgun is that it has extractors instead of ejectors. This makes reloading slower, which is a flaw in a duck gun when you’ve got a downed diver swimming off into the waves. On the upside, it makes it easier to collect your spent hulls after the hunt.
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Pros
- Great value
- Nice handling for a budget gun
Cons
- Made in Turkey
- Finicky safety
Key Specs
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Gauges: 12, 20 gauge -
Weight: 7 pounds (12 ga) -
Overall length: 45.75 inches -
Barrel length: 26 and 28 inches -
Stock: Turkish walnut -
Chokes: F, M, IC -
Price: $989
OL’s news editor Dac Collins has been hunting upland birds almost exclusively with the Weatherby Orion for the past couple seasons. This Turkish-made O/U is an all-around solid value and a proven field gun.
“The Orion I’ve been shooting is a 20-gauge with 28-inch barrels, and it’s killed a number of pheasants in Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming,” Collins says. “I’ve also carried it in the mountains quite a bit to hunt blue grouse. These walks are typically long, steep, and brutal, so they really call for a lighter gun that you can mount and swing quickly in the timber.
“My only knock on the Orion is the safety, which isn’t easy to operate with thicker gloves. Although rarely, I’ve had it get stuck in the middle position, which keeps the safety engaged and is frustrating when a bird is already in the air. I also like the plain finish and basic stock. This gun has taken a beating against trees and rocks, so there’s no need to baby it now.”
Final Thoughts on the Best Over/Under Shotguns
What’s great about today’s over/under shotguns is that you can spend $12,000 or $900 and still go home with a functional firearm. The over/under market is so competitive nowadays that it has forced gun makers to build more reliable shotguns with better features. So decide how much you are willing to spend, which features matter most to you, and then pick a gun (or maybe two) from our list.
Read the full article here
