Best Assault Rifle in GTA Online (2026): All 15 GTA 5 Assault Rifles Ranked
The Service Carbine is the best assault rifle in GTA Online in 2026: about 278 damage per second, level with the fastest killing rifles in the game, with the joint-best accuracy of the class. The best value is the Advanced Rifle, 283 per second for $14,250. Seven rifles sit within 3 per cent of each other on damage per second, so accuracy, magazine and price decide the order below.
All 15 assault rifles in GTA 5 Online: Advanced Rifle, Heavy Rifle, Military Rifle, El Strickler, Battle Rifle, Service Carbine, Bullpup Rifle Mk II, Bullpup Rifle, Assault Rifle Mk II, Carbine Rifle Mk II, Special Carbine Mk II, Special Carbine, Compact Rifle, Assault Rifle, Carbine Rifle. Full stats table ↓
| # | Rifle | Why it is here | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Service Carbine 278 dmg/s · $370,000 | Kills as fast as anything in the class, about 278 damage per second measured, with the joint-best accuracy of any rifle (55) and a 60-round extended clip. Only the price, $370,000, keeps it from being the obvious first buy. | S |
| 2 | Advanced Rifle 283 dmg/s · $14,250 | The highest damage per second measured, 283, alongside the Heavy Rifle, for $14,250 at rank 70. Accuracy 50, 60-round extended clip. The best value in the class by a distance. | S |
| 3 | Bullpup Rifle Mk II 275 dmg/s · $105,750 conversion | About 275 per second, the fastest killing Mk II rifle, and the only one in the top group that takes workshop ammunition. $105,750 to convert. | S |
| 4 | Military Rifle 281 dmg/s · $397,500 | 281 per second, 37.5 per shot, but accuracy 45, heavy recoil and a clip that stops at 45. $397,500. | A |
| 5 | Special Carbine Mk II 240 dmg/s · $135,000 conversion | Joint-best accuracy (55) and the Mk II ammunition. On damage per second it sits about 15 per cent behind the top group by the file values, which is why it is no longer first. | A |
| 6 | Heavy Rifle 283 dmg/s · $450,000 | 283 per second measured, level with the Advanced Rifle, at thirty times the price and with worse accuracy (40). $450,000. | A |
| 7 | Battle Rifle 281 dmg/s · $497,500 | 281 per second, but a 20-round magazine, 30 at most. You reload more than you fire. $497,500. | B |
| 8 | El Strickler 281 dmg/s · $695,000 | The same file values as the Military Rifle, with its 45-round clip fitted. $695,000 for a finish, and only at the Gun Van when it is in rotation, on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC Enhanced. | B |
Seven Rifles Within 3 Per Cent
Damage per second is damage per shot times rounds per minute. The damage comes from the game's weapons file, the rate of fire from in-game measurements, and the two do not always agree: the file gives the Service Carbine 444 rounds a minute, the measure 480; the file gives the Heavy Rifle 380, the measure 500. Where both exist we use the measure. Where only the file value exists, the table marks it.
Run that sum across all fifteen and the top of the class is crowded: the Advanced Rifle and the Heavy Rifle at 283, the Military Rifle, the El Strickler and the Battle Rifle at 281, the Service Carbine at 278 and the Bullpup Rifle Mk II at 275. A 3 per cent gap does not decide a fight. Accuracy does, and so does how often you reload. That is why the Service Carbine, with the best accuracy in that group, is first, and why the Battle Rifle, with a 20-round magazine, is seventh.
Is the Special Carbine Mk II Still the Best?
It was the answer on most lists for years, including this one. On the numbers it no longer is. It fires 444 rounds a minute by the file for 32.5 per shot, about 240 damage per second, some 15 per cent behind the leading group. What it keeps is the joint-best accuracy, 55, and the Mk II ammunition. A figure of 278 per second circulates without the rate of fire behind it; until it is measured, the ranking uses the value that can be checked.
The Best Cheap Assault Rifle: the Advanced Rifle
$14,250 at rank 70 buys the highest damage per second measured in the class, 283, level with a Heavy Rifle that costs $450,000. It fires 500 rounds a minute, the fastest rate in the class, shared with both Bullpup Rifles and the Heavy Rifle, and its accuracy of 50 is one step below the best. It is also in story mode, where it is the strongest rifle available.
All 15 Assault Rifles in GTA 5 Online
Fifteen, sorted by damage per second. Accuracy is the in-game bar, as shown on Rockstar's Social Club; for the Bullpup Rifle, the figure is uncertain. Prices are in-game GTA Online prices; for the four Mk II rifles, the price is the workshop conversion.
| Rifle | Damage per shot | Rounds per minute | Damage per second | Magazine standard / max | Accuracy HUD | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Advanced Rifle | 34 | 500 | 283 | 30 / 60 | 50 | $14,250 rank 70 | Top of the class on damage per second, for the price of a starter rifle. |
Heavy Rifle | 34 | 500 | 283 | 30 / 45 | 40 | $450,000 | The file says 380 rounds a minute, the in-game measure 500. |
Military Rifle | 37.5 | 450 | 281 | 30 / 45 | 45 | $397,500 | Heavy recoil. |
El Strickler | 37.5 | 450 | 281 | 45 | 45 | $695,000 | A Military Rifle with a custom finish and a 45-round clip fitted as standard. |
Battle Rifle | 38 | 444 file | 281 | 20 / 30 | 42 | $497,500 | 38 per shot, second only to the Assault Rifle Mk II. The magazine is the catch. |
Service Carbine | 34.75 | 480 | 278 | 30 / 60 | 55 | $370,000 | Unlocked by collecting hidden weapon components, then bought. |
Bullpup Rifle Mk II | 33 | 500 file | 275 | 30 / 60 | 45 | $105,750 conversion | The fastest killing Mk II rifle. |
Bullpup Rifle | 32 | 500 | 267 | 30 / 60 | 45 to 50 | $14,500 | Its accuracy is given as 50 or 45. |
Assault Rifle Mk II | 40 | 380 | 253 | 30 / 60 | 45 | $98,750 conversion | The hardest hitting rifle per shot, and the slowest to fire. |
Carbine Rifle Mk II | 33 | 445 | 245 | 30 / 60 | 55 | $107,500 conversion | n/a |
Special Carbine Mk II | 32.5 | 444 file | 240 | 30 / 60 | 55 | $135,000 conversion | Credited elsewhere with 278 per second, without the rate behind it. |
Special Carbine | 32 | 445 | 237 | 30 / 100 | 55 | $14,750 | The drum magazine holds 100, against 60 for the Mk II. |
Compact Rifle | 34 | 380 | 215 | 30 / 100 | 35 | $14,650 | The least accurate rifle in the game. |
Assault Rifle | 30 | n/a | n/a | 30 / 100 | 45 | $8,550 rank 24 | The starting rifle. No published rate of fire for it. |
Carbine Rifle | 32 | n/a | n/a | 30 / 100 | 55 | $13,000 rank 42 | No published rate of fire. The 100-round drum is its selling point. |
Mk II Conversions
Four rifles have one: the Assault Rifle, the Carbine Rifle, the Special Carbine and the Bullpup Rifle. The conversion is done at a weapon workshop, which you get with a Mobile Operations Center or an Avenger, and it unlocks tracer, incendiary, armour-piercing and full metal jacket rounds. Hollow point is a handgun round and is not offered on rifles. Every specialised round cuts the magazine to 20, so the extended 60-round clip only applies to standard ammunition.
More GTA V Weapons on GTAside
For long range, the best sniper rifles, led by the Heavy Sniper Mk II. For volume of fire, the Combat MG Mk II hits harder per shot than any rifle, 47, and is ranked with the SMGs and machine guns. The handguns, shotguns and explosives have their own pages, all gathered on the GTA V weapons hub. To pay for a $370,000 rifle, the best paying missions after the July 2026 update.