Core component

AR-15 Rifles by Brand

Factory-built AR-15s, ready to shoot. Pick a brand to see its current model line, barrel and handguard configuration, and what each rifle is set up to do.

12 brands, 40 models listed. Checked 2026-08-01

• Daniel Defense

  premium

  Cold hammer-forged barrels and in-house handguards on every rifle. The reference point for a factory AR-15 built to a standard rather than a price.

  5 models · Black Creek, Georgia

• Bravo Company Manufacturing

  mid to premium

  Mil-spec done properly: FN chrome-lined barrels, HPT/MPI-tested bolt carrier groups, no cosmetic extras. Widely treated as the value benchmark for a duty-grade rifle.

  4 models · Hartland, Wisconsin

• Springfield Armory

  mid

  The SAINT line brought a nickel-boron flat trigger and free-float handguards to the sub-$1,200 factory rifle, which is where most of its reputation comes from.

  4 models · Geneseo, Illinois

• Ruger

  budget to mid

  The AR-556 is the default answer to "cheapest AR-15 from a major manufacturer that I can trust". Plain specification, very wide dealer network.

  3 models · Southport, Connecticut

• Palmetto State Armory

  budget

  Vertically integrated and priced accordingly. Quality control is less consistent than the tiers above, but the lifetime warranty is transferable and the price floor is genuinely low.

  3 models · Columbia, South Carolina

• Smith & Wesson

  budget to mid

  The M&P15 is one of the most widely sold AR-15 families in the United States, which makes parts, accessories and gunsmith familiarity easy to come by.

  3 models · Maryville, Tennessee

• Stag Arms

  mid

  Long-standing maker of left-hand-ejection AR-15s, which almost nobody else offers as a factory option.

  3 models · Cheyenne, Wyoming

• Windham Weaponry

  mid

  Founded by the former Bushmaster staff and plant in Windham, Maine, after Bushmaster production left the state.

  3 models · Windham, Maine

• Bushmaster

  budget to mid

  One of the oldest names on the civilian AR-15. The company passed through Remington Outdoor and is now owned by Franklin Armory, so current production is not the same operation that built its reputation.

  3 models · Carson City, Nevada

• Colt

  mid to premium

  The original military contractor for the M16 and the pattern every other AR-15 is derived from. Now part of CZG.

  3 models · West Hartford, Connecticut

• Remington

  mid

  Not an AR-15 maker. Listed here for the Model 700, the bolt-action that is the reference point for a precision rifle and the parent of a large aftermarket.

  3 models · Huntsville, Alabama

• Century Arms

  budget

  Not an AR-15 maker. Listed here for the Draco, the AK-pattern pistol imported and built from Romanian Cugir components.

  3 models · Georgia, Vermont