There are a lot of moving parts that go into a successful archery hunt. Broadhead choice is an intricate piece of it. They provide confidence and confidence is as deadly as the broadheads themselves.
After sending broadhead upon broadhead downrange through both targets and animals, we’ve come up with a recipe for success. The broadhead needs to be durable, fly well, and excel at slicing and dicing of course. With that in mind, we’ve put together a heavy hitter list of broadheads that deserve your attention in 2024.
Scroll through to see all of our recommendations, and at the end of our list, be sure to check out our buyer’s guide. Check out our comparison chart when it’s time to narrow down your decision.
The Best Broadheads for Hunting in 2024
- Best Overall Broadhead: Evolution Jekyll
- Best Budget Broadhead: Muzzy Trocar three-blade
- Best Fixed Blade: Day Six Evo
- Best Mechanical: Sevr
- Best Hybrid:Evolution Outdoors Hyde
Broadheads Comparison Chart
Why You Should Trust Us
Failure is something I became friends with early on bowhunting. Through the lessons that came with this failure, it’s become very apparent to me what works and what doesn’t. With broadheads, failure is not an option for me.
If all of the hours got added up of me spending time in the bowhunting woods trying to reach out and touch big game animals with broadheads, well I’d probably consider myself even luckier than I already do. Those woods are a classroom, and choosing which broadheads come along for the ride, could mean the difference between getting an A or an F.
Whether it’s trying to hit a dot on a target or hit a single patch of hair on a live animal, broadhead, functionality, durability, and effectiveness are all things on my radar. When I find one that hits all of those marks, I hang on for dear life, because confidence is not easily earned.
Along with my personal experience, I also took into consideration the opinions and experiences of other seasoned hunters around me. And with that what broadheads were hot on the market was also paid attention to.
Every broadhead listed above will do what you need it to do. If you’re kicking around what broadheads to run for the coming bowhunting season, one of these is going to do you right and then some.
Buyer’s Guide: How to Buy the Best Broadheads for Hunting
Mechanical vs. Fixed
One of the age-old and ongoing debates in archery hunting camps is mechanical broadheads versus fixed-blade broadheads. Passionate arguments exist on both sides of the spectrum and both broadhead designs reliably work. Which one is better, though? The better question is which one is better for you.
The flat-out truth is this — both of these broadhead designs work. Endless success photos from bowhunters across the country are the proof in the pudding. Of course, each has its pros and cons. So, we’re going to break it down.
Fixed Blade
The fixed-blade broadhead has been doing its thing since the beginning of bowhunting. It’s been there and done that millions of times over again. So, it’s no surprise when hunters cling to this style of head. What you get is what you get with a fixed blade.
The biggest advantage of running a fixed-blade broadhead is going to be reliability. There are no moving parts on a fixed blade like there are on a mechanical broadhead. For this reason, there is no worry of failure.
Along with that, these are inherently going to penetrate better, as there is no loss of energy from blades having to open. That means more pass-through shots. And lastly, fixed blades tend to be more durable overall. Especially the one-piece designs and heads made with higher-end steel.
When it comes to downsides, the first that comes to mind is tuning. Fixed-blade broadheads are harder to tune across the board. These vanes on the front end of your arrow influence flight much more than mechanicals do. This makes field point accuracy harder to come by.
Secondly, you might get more pass-through shots, but the wound channels are smaller. Smaller wound channels can lead to tougher blood trails, especially on marginal shots. And the last note is that higher-end fixed blades are also much more pricey.
Pros
- Reliable
- Better penetration
- Durable
Cons
- Harder to tune
- Smaller wound channels
- Higher-end heads are very pricey
Mechanical
Technology is an ever-evolving thing. People see gaps in efficiency and naturally want to fill them. The mechanical broadhead is a perfect example of that. It excels where the fixed blade doesn’t.
A huge selling point for mechanical broadheads is their impeccable arrow flight. It is very unlikely that you’ll need to do any sort of broadhead tuning with these things. This makes things so much easier before a hunt.
And once you do get on that hunt, you’ll hopefully loose an arrow at what you seek. Note that the blood trail is nothing short of fantastic, due to the massive cutting diameter that these broadheads inflict. If that sounds good to you, you won’t have to pay an arm and a leg to get yourself into a quality mechanical broadhead, either.
While the mechanical broadhead excels where the fixed-blade broadhead doesn’t, it also lacks where the fixed-blade excels. First on the list is reliability. These have moving parts and can absolutely fail. With how hard archery opportunities are to come by, that doesn’t sit well with some bowhunters.
And because these heads expand on impact, there is always a loss of energy due to the force it takes to open up the blades. This robs folks of penetration. If the broadhead indeed comes out the other side, it’s also a very real possibility that it won’t all be intact. Mechanical broadheads aren’t nearly as durable as fixed blades.
Pros
- Impeccable arrow flight
- Huge wound channels = Great blood trails
- Affordable
Cons
- Can fail and not open
- Lacks in penetration
- Prone to breaking
Final Thoughts
When the book comes to a close, I’m not going to tell you that there is a right answer here across the board. There are too many variables for that.
Some folks swear by fixed blades and others swear by mechanicals, and that says two things. One, they are both damn good at their job. And two, don’t get too caught up in what other folks think. Mold your arrow setup to you and your style of hunting.
In the end, a broadhead is just a tool. The person wielding that tool is the one really running the show.
