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Stoeger STR-9 Pistol – New Contender for Best Handgun Under $400

The Stoeger STR-9 might just go down as the best new handgun under $400 coming out of the 2019 SHOT Show. It is also one that might be missed by a lot of people who don’t recognize the Stoeger Industries name.

Before the annual trade show, news about the 9mm pistol leaked out. I was immediately interested, as Stoeger had done a very good job producing the Cougar pistols. The Cougar was a Beretta design that had largely been abandoned as Beretta pursued new designs like the PX4 Storm and APX pistols.

Stoeger STR-9 9mm pistol

Stoeger picked up the Cougar and continued the manufacturing of those pistols. Stoeger Cougars were widely regarded as being an excellent value in the self defense handgun market. Nevertheless, the guns seemed to take a back seat to the polymer-framed, striker-fired handguns like those from Glock and Smith & Wesson.

It seems that Stoeger has abandoned the Cougar pistol and has put all of its weight behind the new STR-9.

Basics of the STR-9

Stoeger STR-9 Features

The STR-9 is everything that a modern defensive pistol seems to need for success. In fact, if there is a manufacturing checklist somewhere, I bet it has nearly every box ticked.

As a striker-fired pistol, the shooter has a consistent trigger pull from one shot to the next. Having shot and trained others to shoot traditional double action/single action (DA/SA) pistols, I can say that the consistency of a striker-fired pistol is much easier to learn. Every time you press the trigger, it feels the same. This is appealing to many people.

Polymer frames are a normal part of the shooting world. When done right, these frames are every bit as durable as a metal frame in most circumstances. I’m not talking edge case here – just average Joe self-defense guns. Once the manufacturing is set up, polymer frames can be much less expensive to make. This allows the company to keep the guns affordable.

Matching the tool to the user is an important concept. In the case of handguns, there have been a variety of methods developed to help do this.

Stoeger uses an interchangeable backstrap system to help get a good hand fit on the pistol no matter how large or small your hands are. I’ve got medium hands, but relatively stubby fingers. This makes proper finger placement on the trigger something of a challenge with pistols like the Beretta 92. But using small backstraps on a handgun like the STR-9 improves my trigger reach.

Stoeger STR-9 Backstrap System

Left-handed shooters might be interested to know that the magazine release is reversible. With just a few minutes of work, you can move the push button release to the right side of the frame.

As we’ve seen in the past few years, the shooting public has come to appreciate the 9mm cartridge again. I saw the major shift to the “Wonder 9” semi-auto pistols in the 80s, then to the .40 S&W in the 90s. Now, the public seems to have shifted pretty quickly back to the 9×19 again.

It is a proven cartridge that has the largest base of active shooters in the US today. I’ve seen some of the ammunition sales numbers from a few of the major companies. If you make a gun or ammo, ignore the 9mm fans at your own peril.

Three dot sights aren’t my favorite, but they seem to be the default position for many companies. Stoeger selected them for this pistol. You can get a factory model that has three dot night sights for a little more money. If you like night sights, this might be the best option for you.

New Stoeger STR-9 9mm pistol

One of the features I do like about the sights is that the rear sight has a hard front edge. This allows a shooter to run the slide with only one hand in an emergency. Yes, I recognize this is an unlikely occurrence for an armed citizen. It is, however, a bonus that cost the company nothing to include. I appreciate it.

Adding a light or supplemental aiming laser is easily accomplished with the Stoeger STR-9. A reasonably sized accessory rail is available to the shooter.

For some this might be a deal breaker: the gun is made in Turkey. Ignoring politics for a moment, there are some good guns being made in that country. The quality of the manufacturing base in that country does not concern me.

Specifications

Caliber9mm
Magazine Capacity15
Weight24 oz
Barrel Length4.17″
Overall Length7.44″
Actionstriker-fired, semi-auto
Sights3-dot
Finishmatte black
MSRP$329 base

The Models

At launch, Stoeger is offering three different versions of the STR-9. Fundamentally, they are the same gun but with a few minor differences.

Stoeger STR-9 Review

The base model comes with one magazine and only one backstrap. It has a suggested retail price of $329. Since it doesn’t have multiple backstraps to try out at home, you definitely want to check this in the store before you put your money down. If this works for you, I’m betting you can get this for less than $300 at many gun shops.

Next up the list is the same gun, but with three magazines and three differently sized backstraps. This is the model for me, as I like to have multiple mags for every gun I own. The MSRP is $389, but I bet I pay less than $350 when they arrive locally.

If you want night sights, you have one option, and it has a full retail price of $449. At that price you also get three magazines and backstraps. So, it is only a $60 jump for tritium sights.

Final Thoughts

Not everyone who wants a pistol for self-defense can afford a SIG SAUER or HK, never mind an artisan gun from Nighthawk Custom or Cabot Guns. Frankly, a new Glock or M&P is a bit out of reach for some people who want to exercise their right to protect themselves.

Guns like the Stoeger STR-9 offer options to people that have historically had few. Fortunately, there are a growing number of good guns in the sub-$400 market. I look forward to testing one of the STR-9 pistols and letting you know how it performs. If you get one before me, please leave a comment below with your experiences shooting it. If these are good or bad, let’s share that information and help each other out.

Last Update: October 16, 2022

By Richard Johnson

Richard Johnson is a gun writer, amateur historian and - most importantly - a dad. He's done a lot of silly things in his life, but quitting police work to follow his passion of writing about guns was one of the smartest things he ever did. He founded this site and continues to manage its operation.

22 replies on “Stoeger STR-9 Pistol – New Contender for Best Handgun Under $400”

Really liking that low bore axis…all you see above his hand is slide. This is a great site, I hope you’ll have a nice thorough review of the Stoeger as soon as it becomes available…

This gun looks very much like a Sar 9 while reading the review it said it is also made in Turkey while l got a Sar 9 a month ago couldn’t wait to shoot it have had two range visits with it with federal 115 grain full metal jacket ammo blazer 115 full metal jacket ammo and federal 115 standard pressure hollow points gun ran flawlessly with 500 rounds through it is very comfortable to shoot accurate and I’m very happy with it so far trigger and trigger reset are good seems to be as good as any Glock 19,17 and only costed 330 dollars out the door I’m thinking this gun is very similar and most likely be as good as a Glock also without a 550 dollar price tag l really like the way it looks more competition better guns with better prices and more options to choose from everybody wins

I suspect that the STR-9 was designed for the same contract competition won by the SAR 9.

From what I have been able to freeze frame in videos, the STR-9’s internals are very close in design to a Glock Gen 3. It is so close that I suspect some parts may directly interchange unless Stoeger has altered the pin diameters or other dimensions. While this landed S&W a lawsuit over the Sigma, the Glock patents involved have since expired.

Hardware store near me had one in their display case and I got a chance to fondle it. Quality appears to be excellent. Trigger pull is a bit heavier then a Glock but it’s very stead with no stacking. Trigger reset is extremely short and crisp. Texturing on grip is outstanding. Neither too aggressive nor too slippery. Machining of slide and barrel as well as the melonite finish were flawless. I find it a tad annoying that the base model only comes with one mag and the one included medium-sized backstrap. You have to buy up to get one with three mags and three backstraps. On this particular pistol the magazine would not drop freely it would drop halfway and then stop and no amount of pressing the mag release button would release it.

Thanks for the field report. I haven’t seen one locally yet, but I will keep an eye out for them. I would definitely want the one with multiple mags and backstraps.

-Richard

Always looking for a quality pistol at a good price. There are more today than say ten years ago. Sadly none are made here in the USA.
IMHO SW and Ruger are junk, except their revolvers. They have managed to keep some kind of QC with them. Well I guess I shouldn’t say junk. But the material Ruger uses is a fiberglass reinforced resin and not a polymer like so many others use. That fiber/resin is slick like Teflon in my hands and I can’t keep a grip on any of their guns except the revolvers.
SW pistols that I have purchased all bar none had crap ( being very kind here ) triggers. It could be said that I just had bad luck, except tht one of my best friends ( he’s like a brother to me ) was talked in to buying a poly SW by a slick willy ffl by convincing him it was every bit as good as a Glock for less. I had already warned him away from SW poly pistols but he bought it and regretted it the first trip to the range. He sold it ASAP and bought my G19.
All this babble has a point and that is quality. People have been conditioned to believe that you have to pay a hi price for quality, it is true in phones, TVs and more.
Want a quality phone and not pay 1000.00 get a BLU XI+ about 350.00 and will leave the iPhone 10 in the dust. But no one knows about it.
Want a great TV for a great price? Look at anything TCL. They all come with ROKU built in. These are not SUPER HI END TVs with billion pixel per inch like everyone raves about from Samsung or another co. But they are plenty enough good TVs at very good prices.
Stoeger is now producing the STR9 and time will tell if the quality is up to snuff. We all hope it is because at that price, it could be a very popular item.
Some have pointed out that the mags are drop free. And while for many that is seen as a flaw and is agrivating. There are companies that intentionally make their guns this way. Early glock mags were designed NOT to drop free on purpose. But there were so many complaints about it by people shooting competitively with glocks that they changed the mags so that they were drop free.
As I understand it, non drop free design is to prevent the user from losing the magazine and or to prevent mag damage.
This is probably the ideology behind how the Stoger mags do not drop out.
Good day.

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