The Sig P365 is arguably the most size efficient 9mm concealed carry handgun on the market and the Sig P365 XL is its slightly larger brother. We compare the Sig P365 vs P365 XL and cover all the pros and cons of both firearms.
Size
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Concealed Carry
Both of these are extremely small guns but the Sig P365 has a clear advantage over the Sig P365 XL being just under a half-inch shorter in the grip. The size difference sets them up for different roles in your concealed carry arsenal. Another key difference is the weight.
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The most important think about concealed carry is getting a good quality concealed carry holster.
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With 2 extra rounds of ammunition, the Sig P365XL weighs two and a half ounces more than the Sig P365XL.
Pocket Carry
While I’m sure there are some individuals who could pocket carry the Sig P365 XL for most of the population it’s not a viable pocket carry option.
The Sig P365 is much for viable for most of the population. I’m 6’ and 175 pounds and I can pocket carry the Sig P365 with the right pocket holster in most of pants. With a normal pocket hoslter I need to have pants with huge pockets and bulkier cut to avoid showing that I’m pocket carrying a gun.
Ankle Carry
Both of these guns could be ankle carried but the general rule of thumb is that for your long term joint health you don’t want to ankle carry a gun that weights over 16 ounces loaded.
IWB Carry(3-5 o’clock)
Both of these guns work great for IWB carry.
In theory the Sig P365 is easier to conceal with it’s shorter grip but if you have a good holster that’ll properly cant the holster then you should be able to conceal the guns with similar effectiveness from the 4-5 o’clock. When concealing at the 3 o’clock the shorter grip on the Sig P365 becomes a more clear advantage.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL AWIB Carry (Appendix Carry)
For AIWB carry both the Sig P365 and Sig P365XL do well due to the thin profile and relatively short grips. The P365 is so small that most people won’t have an issue concealing the larger Sig P365XL.
The extra length on the slide of the Sig P365 XL balances out the gun a little better and makes the gun more comfortable to carry AIWB for most people. That said carrying a Sig P365 in a Sig P365XL holster fixes that for most people.
OWB Carry
If you want to carry an OWB holster concealing a gun can be more difficult than with IWB carry. Having a thin gun like the Sig P365 and Sig P365XL gives you the best possible chance of concealing without wearing oversized clothing.
A lot of OWB holsters don’t have a sufficient amount of cant built into the holster and if you’re using one of those than the shorter grip on the Sig P365 will conceal much better.
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If you have a properly designed OWB holster with significant adjustable cant then the Sig P365 XL will likely work just as well although you will have to wear slightly longer shirts to account for the extra muzzle length.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Ergonomics overall
Frame
The only difference between the frames when comparing the Sig P365 vs P365 XL is the length of the grips. You get 2 extra rounds with a Sig P365xl flush fit magazine so the grip is just under a half-inch longer.
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The guns both use the same magazine body so you can run Sig P365XL magazines in the shorter Sig P365.
Sig makes 12 and 15 round aftermarket magazines for the Sig P365 and the 15 round magazines come with 2 sleeve options so choose one optimized for the gun you’re using it with.
These extensions are ergonomic and well designed. The 15 round magazine is a bit much in length and looks a little ridiculous in both the P365XL and especially in the Sig P365.
Grip Length
One thing Sig has done really well on these guns is the undercut. The Sig P365XL is a very small gun but I can get all my fingers on the grip of the gun and I can get half my pinky on the grip of the smaller Sig P365.
The issue with this guns is not the front o the girp but the rear potion. If you make a fist with your hand you’ll notice the bottom of your palm hangs much lower than your fingers. This means that your palms will likely hang off the back of the grip with both the Sig P365 and The Sig P365 XL.
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On the smaller Sig P365 there are sharp corners under the backstrap of the grip that will poke your hand unless you have really small hands. It’s not painful but it is annoying. The Sig P365XL doens’t have the same issue although your hand will still extend past the backstrap. Sig recontoured that area of the grip on the XL frame is quite ergonomic.
An issue most people will have with both guns is the magazine not dropping free unless you fully break you grip on the gun. Most people’s palm will sit below the grip and stop the magazine from dropping free. Most people don’t carry a spare magazine when carrying concealed but if you do this is something you’ll want to be sure to train around.
Texture
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It’s hard to fault Sig for the texturing they chose for these guns. There is consistent texturing 360 degrees around the grip and it does a good job of keeping your hand in place. It could be more aggressive in my opinion but Sig with what I would consider a good compromise that’ll appease almost everyone.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Slide
The slides on the P365 series are sized proportionally to the rest of the gun but they’re still large enough to easily manipulate.
There are both forward and rear serrations that are aggressive enough to use effectively but not aggressive enough to cut you. The finish on the slide isn’t very slick and feels similar to a parkerized texture so that also aids your grip on the slide.
If you’re manipulating the slide from the the Sig P365XL has an advantage from a safety perspective as the extra length keeps your hand back from the muzzle. In my opinion, Sig did an excellent job on the slide serrations.
Sights
The sight picture on the Sig P365 vs P365XL is identical on these guns when it’s ordered with the stock sights. You can get 3 different sight options on the Sig P365.
There are some guns out there that come with standard 3 dot painted sights, the most common Sig P365 comes with Siglite night sights and then they also have the Sig P365 SAS model that comes with the Meprolight bullseye sight.
At this time you can only get the sight P365 XL with the Siglite night sights.
Sig P365 Sights
P365 Siglite Night Sights
The Siglite night sights are 3 dot night rights with a black serrated rear with a tritium vial on each side of the notch and a front tritium sight with a green luminescent ring round the tritium vial. Unfortunately, in daylight, the green ring isn’t a bright as sights like the Ameriglo and Trijicon HD yellow-painted front sights. That’s said it’s still brighter than other options.
Sig P365 SAS Sights
The Sig P365 SAS sights are incredibly neat but from a practical standpoint, they’re what I would consider a gimmick.
I’ll start by saying I love the concept and I will be buying a Sig P365 because it’s an interesting concept but the sights are slower to use than traditional sights and the sight picture is much less precise.
If you’re planning to shoot a torso-sized target within 5 yards they’ll work fine but the same thing can be said for point shooting.
The idea of these sights appeal to you, then you’ll probably be better to offer to replace the factory sights on a normal Sig P365 with something like XS big dots. The big dots will be easier to pick up and for most people, they’ll be more accurate than the stock sights on the SAS.
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I really like where sig was trying to go with the Sig P365 SAS but they fell short in practical execution.
P365XL Sights
Luckily the Sig P365xl ships with Siglite night sights with an identical sight picture to what comes on most Sig P365s.
The difference between the Sig P365 vs P365 XL is the XL sight is mounted to an optic cut over. A major upside of this is the Sig P365 XL will accept slide mounted red dots like the Holosun 507k and the Sig Romeo Zero.
Unfortunately, there is a downside as well. The downside is that there are no aftermarket rear sight options that’ll work with the Sig P365XL. That said the
Controls
Safety
There is no difference in the offering between the Sig P365 vs P365 XL. Both guns are offered with and without a thumb safety. I don’t have a safety on my personal guns but Sig did a good job of making the guns usable without making them large and bulky.
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They’re well-positioned so you can ride your thumb on them like a 1911 but they don’t stick out any further than the slide lock.
Sig P365 vs P365 XLTrigger
P365 Series Trigger Shoes
One difference between the Sig P365 vs P365 XL is the trigger shoe but there is no difference in how the triggers pull. Internally the guns are identical when it comes for the trigger so the pull feels exactly the same.
If you like more modern flat trigger shoes then you’ll want to checkout the Sig P365XL vs the P365 that has a more traditional curved trigger shoe. Both work about the same for me and I don’t find that I prefer one over the other.
They both work fine but if you find you prefer one you can always buy the sig factory trigger shoe and switch it out if the gun comes stock with the trigger shoe you don’t like.
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The Trigger Pull
This is probably the biggest upside of this gun series 2nd to the 10 round capacity in the Sig P365. the trigger isn’t light but it’s right where a self defense trigger should be. It has a nice rolling break that makes it very shootable.
Trigger Pull Play by Play
Initally you’ll feel some light takeup and then you’ll feel some creep as the weight of the trigger pull increased before the trigger breaks. This trigger definitely has a rolling break that will surprise you if you’re pulling the trigger extremely slow but it’s predicatable enough that you won’t fire the gun unless you mean to.
Slide Lock
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Slide locks are idetical and low profile. They’rre a little bit square and angular and there are sharp edges that can be a little unccomfortable but how often do you really use this feature? As long as you aren’t left handed it’s easy to use and reach. Another win from Sig on the design.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Magazine Well
The frames on these guns are extemely thin on the sides so the gun will fit the double stack magazines. There is no flaired magwell on the Sig P365 vs P365 XL which has a slight flair. Due to that the P365XL is going to get the win there.
But be sure to be carful when inserting a magazine to make sure it’ll seat. Often times you primary hand palm will block your support hand from seating the magazine.
Quality
These guns are both identical from a quality standpoint. Both are what you’d expect for a gun in the $500-$600 price range. The grip modules can seem a little cheap but considering you can easily find a replacement that doesn’t bother me.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Aftermarket
There is definitely a stronger aftermarket for the Sig P365 vs P365 XL. Sights, holsters, etc are all more plentiful for the Sig P365 than the XL. That said there are definitely enough P365 XL options out there to make the average consumer more than happy.
The biggest aftermarket deficit for the XL is the lack of aftermarket Iron sights but in this day in age, most are probably looking for an optic instead.
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Aesthetics
Personally, I think the Sig P365 is was more proportional and a much more attractive gun. I’ve always found the Sig P365 to look much better than the Sig P365XL but at the end of the day it comes down to personal preference.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Shooting
Shooting the Sig P365 vs XL you’d think that the longer slide and longer grip would give you a major advantage but in my experience with iron sights, it doesn’t.
There is just barely less recoil with the XL than the Sig P365 but in my opinion ounce for ounce, the Sig P365 is a standout performformer.
When you shoot the regular Sig P365 you’re amazed at how well it performs considering the tiny size but when you shoot the Sig P365XL it’s nothing special. It does shoot better than the Sig P365 but by single-digit percentage points.
I actually shoot better with the Sig P365 vs P365 XL in a couple of scenarios but there are some situations where I shoot the P365 XL better as well.
Senario 1: Long Distance Shooting
Long-distance shooting steel torso targets at 100 yards slow fire is a lot easier with the Sig P365 due to the shorter sight radius. You’re reading this and thinking this guy has no idea what he’s talking about a longer sight radius makes you more accurate.
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The truth is a longer sight radius will show you more movement in the sights. Extra movement when shooting at distance makes you second guess your sight picture so you’re more likely to speed up your trigger press which is incredibly important when shooting a tiny gun at 100 yards.
Senario 2: Close distance shooting at Speed
When shooting 10 yards and less “perceived” movement in the sight radius is also an advatange. At 10-12 yards and beyond I find the longer sight radius of the Sig P365XL seems to work better for me but this is something you’ll have to test yourself.
Scenario 3: 25 yard Slowfire Bullseye (B8 Targets)
Bullseye shooting at 25 yard the Sig P365XL and the longer sight radius just works a lot better for me which is counter intuitive when you see my experience shooting steel torsos at 100 yards. This is 100% a mental thing and it’s how it works with my mind but I think a lot of other shooters will have a similar experience.
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If I were to put a set of blacked target sights on a standard Sig P365 I’m pretty sure I could out perform the XL because the sights alone would give me that much of an advantage. At 100 yards shooting a steel torso the crude siglite sights work better than fine target sights for me since the target is fairly large to 12 inches wide and 16 or so inches tall vs a small black X ring I can barely see at 25 yards.
Closing thoughts on shooting:
The Sig P365 really performs well and I think your typical shooter will gain more advantage from it than the Sig P365XL.
You can go just a little bigger with the Sig P320 X Compact and it’ll shoot much better than the XL while the Sig P365 XL doesn’t improve much if any over the Sig P365. So the winner for me is the Sig P365 vs P365XL.
If I were to add a red dot to the Sig P365 XL it would probably completely change my mind on the Sig P365 vs Sig P365 XL from a shooting perspective.
Sig P365 vs P365 XL Price/Value
At $499 street price for Sig P365 vs P365 XL at $579. Both guns generally sell $100 under the MSRP. If you’re not planning to add a red dot optic the Sig P365 is a better value but considering it’d cost around $150 for a basic optics but to by added to the Sig P365.
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Pros/Cons
Sig P365 Pros
- Size
- Iron Sight Ooptions
- Shoots incredible for it’s size
Sig P365 XL Pros
- Red Dot Mount
- Capacity
- Grip Length
P365 Cons
- Capacity
- No Red Dot Mounts
- Doesn’t shoot as well for it’s larger size
P365 XL Cons
- Size
- Rear sight mounted to the optic cut cover
This is an opinion piece, but I always aim to eliminate bias. Look, we’ve all read them before. Gun reviews that claim to be helpful, but they’re really thinly veiled hit pieces trying to get you to buy something before you’ve even started your research. Or, even worse, a review put together by a content writer who has never even held a gun.
I’ve trained with some of the best in the business to learn various shooting styles and ideologies to better serve our customers. I’ve purchased guns of all price points, calibers, and action types to build the best products for the market. I want you to walk away knowing you have the information you need to make a sound purchasing decision.
Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHICH
