Power Down Range: New Rifle Hunting Loads for 2026

While it might seem like there isn’t a whole lot more that can happen with ammunition, companies keep introducing new loads, and sometimes calibers, every year. And 2026 is no different.

As expected, there are several new subsonic rifle hunting loads. Suppressors have exploded in popularity over the last few years because of their benefits to hunters and shooters. This popularity is not going to drop any time soon with the elimination of the $200 Tax Stamp. Suppressors sales have, in fact, increased even more, with applications coming in so fast that the ATF eForms site has been unable to keep up with demand.

Of course, these companies didn’t forget about supersonic ammo, as there are several new full-power loads for folks to consider. Federal has a new Berger Elite Hunter load, along with two Terminal Ascent loads. Remington is really coming back hard with three new 7mm BC loads and three Core-Lokt PSP loads in addition to its new subsonic line.  Then, CCI has a new rimfire hunting round that looks quite nice. Here’s a few that we really found interesting.

Remington 7mm Backcountry

When Federal Premium introduced 7mm BC last year, folks took notice. The company created a proprietary Peak Alloy case technology to deliver high velocities from shorter barrels. Basically, a 16-inch barrel could obtain the velocities of an 18- or 20-inch barrel.

Now, Remington Ammunition has introduced 7mm BC loads featuring some of its most popular bullets. The first two are Core-Lokt and Core-Lokt Tipped, both with 175-grain bullets. Core-Lokt has long been popular with deer hunters, and Core-Lokt Tipped loads use the same bullet only better. Tipped provides improved accuracy and long-range potential, flying truer and flatter with devastating terminal energy.

The 175-grain Long Range Speer Impact bullet brings precision and performance to long distances. The bullet is tough with bonded construction, while the Slipstream Polymer Tip helps the bullet to open effectively, even at long range.

Federal Subsonic Rifle Hunting Loads

With suppressors becoming common, subsonic loads were sure to follow. Federal Premium has introduced three in popular hunting calibers for 2026, along with one that was specifically designed for subsonic.

The first is in 30-30 Win., featuring 170-grain Fusion bullets. The 30-30 has long been a deer round, and it has received a resurgence in recent years via tactical lever-gun models with threaded barrels.

Next comes Fusion 45-70 Govt. with a 300-grain bullet. The 45-70 became popular a while ago and it’s not going away anytime soon. It’s an effective round on large game, and is effective and fairly quiet when subsonic and suppressed.

The .308 Win. round with a 190-grain Fusion Tipped bullet comes out at just over 1,000 fps. This keeps the bullet from breaking the sound barrier. However, it still provides outstanding accuracy and terminal effectiveness.

Last is the .300 BLK using a 190-grain bullet. The .300 BLK was designed for subsonic, mainly for special operators. However, hunters found it quite effective for deer at mid ranges, even in subsonic speeds. Everything about this round was designed around suppressors and target effectiveness.

Remington Core-Lokt PSP Loads

No one knows how many deer have been taken with those old pointed soft-point Core-Lokts from Remington. The number is probably staggering, as hunters have loved the “deadliest mushroom in the woods” since the original soft point was introduced in the 1930s. The PSP simply improved long-range performance. This traditional cup and core bullet is now loaded into three new calibers.

The 300 BLK Remington Core-Lokt PSP features a 130-grain bullet. It is a supersonic load that works pretty well with a suppressor. Combining the popular bullet with this caliber should make some hunters happy.

Remington also loaded this deer dropper into 6.5 PRC using a 140-grain bullet, as well as 7mm PRC with a 175-grain bullet. Pairing this bullet with these calibers provides hunters with more choices in rifle hunting loads that are very effective on large game. Its jacket is locked to a lead core, delivering consistent weight retention and excellent expansion.

Federal Premium Berger Elite Hunter

Berger Elite Hunter bullets are designed to be highly accurate, long-range projectiles. As such, they work well in calibers designed for long-range shooting, such as 7mm PRC. The thin jacket on this rifle hunting load has a high ballistic coefficient.

It is also loaded to incredibly tight tolerances with a 195-grain Berger Elite Hunter bullet. This round in this caliber provides sub-MOA groups, if the shooter has the ability. The 7mm PRC is extremely accurate and quite effective at long distances.

Remington Subsonic Rifle Line

Remington Ammunition has also jumped into providing subsonic ammo for use with suppressors with three new loads. These loads send bullets out of the barrel under the speed of sound (1,125 fps). This eliminates the “crack” of the bullet through the air.

The new Remington subsonic 360 Buckhammer features a 250-grain boat-tail hollow point round. The boat-tail flies true while the hollow point hits with performance. The .308 Win. load uses a 190-grain boat-tail hollow point while the .45-70 load uses a 300-grain version of that bullet. All three new rifle hunting loads work with suppressors to reduce noise at the barrel and surrounding areas.

Federal Premium 6mm ARC

While the .223/5.56 is still king in ARs, the 6mm ARC is getting popular with modern sporting rifle shooters. It provides more power in a very familiar platform for most shooters. The 6mm ARC chambering also offers long-range accuracy with little recoil. Because of this, Federal has introduced three new loads in 6mm ARC, one is a rifle hunting load.

The 110-grain Fusion Tipped round in 6mm ARC provides the same terminal performance as Fusion, but with a polymer tip fitted within a skived nose cavity. It offers higher ballistic coefficients, flatter trajectories and more energy for extended effective range.

The other two 6mm ARC loads feature a 108-grain Berger BT Target bullet for competitors and a 110-grain TMJ bullet for training.

Federal Premium Terminal Ascent

Federal builds Terminal Ascent to be accurate and flat shooting, while expanding with weight retention. Whether at long or short distances, this bullet brings down game. For 2026, the company is putting this powerful bullet into two more calibers.

The 6.5mm PRC features a 140-grain bullet, while the .300 Rem. Ultra Mag. comes with a 175-grain bullet. Both feature bullets with petals that open instantly and peel back uniformly. This transfers more energy on impact and carves straight, deadly wound channels at all velocities. This includes longer range as bullets slow down.

CCI Hunter Series Rimfire

The new CCI Hunter Series was designed with hunting in mind. It features flat-nose bullets in both standard and subsonic velocities. It also provides the power and precision to make clean harvests without excessive meat damage.

Each load is assembled using CCI’s high-quality primers, propellants and brass. All this ensures consistent ignition and dependable field performance. The new .22 loads even come in a blaze orange box in case it drops out of the jacket.