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The Best Bow Sights for Hunting in 2024

Single-pin, multi-pin, slider, or fixed, it doesnโ€™t matter. A quality bow sight is a crucial link between you and a successful archery hunt.
best bow sights for hunting(Photo/Josh Kirchner)
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Single-pin, multi-pin, slider, or fixed, it doesnโ€™t matter. Having a quality bow sight needs to be on your radar for the coming hunting season.

There is no shortage of options out there when it comes to bow sights. I get a chuckle these days with how many there are, especially looking back on my first bow sight. These days, it would look more like a paperweight than a bow sight.  A rusty relic with no agenda.

Bow sights of today are a stark difference from that old relic I had. The level of craftsmanship, precision, and features are unbelievable. From fiber optic pins to micro adjustments and built-in rangefinders, they are a work of art. It is undeniable that they are a huge part of the success of the modern-day bowhunter.

Instead of sifting your way through the ocean of available bow sights, we at GearJunkie did the sifting for you. Weโ€™ve broken down our top picks of bow sights for 2024.

For a side-by-side spec comparison, have a look at our chart, and be sure to read our buyer’s guide to help you decide which bow sight is best for you.

Editor’s Note: This guide was updated on June 12, 2024, adding the reliable CBE Trek Pro Micro 3V and awarding it our top choice for a single-pin sight. We also now cover the HHA Tetra RYZ, a great option for folks who like to shoot at longer ranges.

The Best Bow Sights for Hunting of 2024


Best Overall Bow Sight for Hunting

Black Gold Ascent Verdict

Product Badge

  • Mount type: Standard
  • Number of pins: 3 or 5
  • Axis adjustments: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd axis (3rd is micro)

Pros

  • Simple design
  • Great warranty
  • Fully customizable

Cons

  • No micro adjust
Best Budget Bow Sight for Hunting

Redline RL3

  • Mount type: Standard
  • Number of pins: 3 or 5
  • Axis adjustments: 1st and 2nd

Pros

  • Affordable
  • Micro-adjust windage and elevation
  • Rheostat light

Cons

  • No 3rd axis adjustment
Best Single Pin Bow Sight for Hunting

CBE Trek Pro Micro 3V

  • Mount type: Dovetail
  • Number of pins: 1(3 fiber optics stacked vertically)
  • Axis adjustments: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd

Pros

  • More versatile than standard single-pin
  • Micro-adjust windage
  • Laser-engraved sight tapes

Cons

  • Not cheap

  • Mount type: Standard extension, direct, bridge-lock, and Picatinny
  • Number of pins: 3, 4, or 5
  • Axis adjustments: 2nd and 3rd

Pros

  • Flips between multi and single pin
  • Lots of mounting options
  • 2 sight tapes offer more versatility and precision

Cons

  • Expensive
Best Technology in a Bow Sight for Hunting

Garmin A1i Pro

  • Mount type: Dovetail (quick detach)
  • Number of pins: 7
  • Axis adjustments: Garmin micro-adjustability on all axes

Pros

  • Can range while at full draw
  • To the yard accuracy
  • Can store multiple arrow profiles in unit

Cons

  • Very expensive

  • Mount Type: Fixed hunter bracket, long and short dovetail, and Hoyt Picatinny
  • Number of pins: 2 pins on 1 vertical pin blade
  • Axis adjustment: 2nd and 3rd

Pros

  • No shortage of mounting options
  • Will appeal to those wanting to shoot long-range
  • Second pin with dual indicators allows for more versatility on the fly

Cons

  • Second pin is fixed, so where it is it is. This will not be a constant yardage between setups

  • Mount type: Dovetail
  • Number of pins: 1, 3, or 5
  • Axis adjustments: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd

Pros

  • Metal sight tapes
  • Very smooth slider
  • Can switch scopes easily with the turn of a knob

Cons

  • Slider lock comes loose which can allow slider to move by accident

  • Mount type: Dovetail
  • Number of pins: 1, 3, and 5
  • Axis adjustments: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd

Pros

  • Multiple pin counts are available
  • Includes a sight light
  • Dual indicators

Cons

  • Where the sight housing attaches to dovetail bar tends to come loose with frequent use

  • Mount type: Standard
  • Number of pins: 1
  • Axis adjustments: 2nd and 3rd axis

Pros

  • Durable
  • Micro-adjust windage and elevation
  • Options of dovetail or classic mounting

Cons

  • Expensive

  • Mount type: Standard
  • Number of pins: 3, 5, and 7
  • Axis adjustments: 2nd and 3rd

Pros

  • Easy to set up
  • Multiple pin count offerings
  • Comes with rheostat light

Cons

  • No picatinny mounting option

  • Mount type: Standard
  • Number of pins: 3, 5, and 7
  • Axis adjustments: 2nd, and 3rd

Pros

  • Durable
  • Micro-adjust windage and elevation
  • Self-locking gang micro adjust

Cons

  • Bulky

  • Mount type: Dovetail or Picatinny
  • Number of pins: 1 or 3 pin
  • Axis adjustment: 2nd and 3rd axis

Pros

  • Lots of color options
  • Angled track allows for more yardage
  • Level located on top provides more clear sight picture

Cons

  • Void wheel doesnโ€™t lock

Bow Sight Comparison Chart

SightPriceMount TypeNumber of PinsAxis Adjustment
Black Gold Ascent Verdict
$279Standard3 or 51st, 2nd, and 3rd (3rd is micro)
Redline RL3
$99Standard3 or 51st and 2nd
HHA Tetra Single Pin
$279Standard1
2nd and 3rd
CBE Trek Pro Micro 3V$350Dovetail1 (3 fiber optics stacked vertically)1st, 2nd, and 3rd
Option Archery Canyon Pounder
 $620Standard extension, direct, bridge-lock, and Picatinny3, 4, or 52nd and 3rd
Garmin A1i Pro
$1,300Dovetail (quick detach)7Garmin micro-adjustability on all axis
Axcel Landslyde Carbon Pro Slider
$410Dovetail1, 3, or 51st, 2nd, and 3rd
HHA Tetra RYZFixed hunter bracket, long and short dovetail, and Hoyt Picatinny 2 pins on 1 vertical pin blade2nd and 3rd
CBE Trek Pro
$360Dovetail1, 3, or 52nd and 3rd
Trophy Ridge React Pro
$279Standard3, 5, and 72nd and 3rd
Spot Hogg Hunter MRT
$274Standard3, 5, and 72nd and 3rd
Dialed Arxos
$500Dovetail or Picatinny1 or 3 pin2nd and 3rd
Josh Kirchner tests bow sights in a variety of conditions; (photo/Josh Kirchner)

How We Tested Bow Sights

Well, we bow hunt โ€ฆ a lot. After spending an immense amount of time in the field each year, what works, what doesnโ€™t, what we need, and what we donโ€™t becomes apparent. Whether in the mountains getting bumped off rocks and rocked by the weather or on the plains crawling through the grass and ingesting an unhealthy amount of dust and debris. From shooting in broad daylight to the fading light of the evening. Our bowsights get put through the wringer.

Rain? Yup. Snow? Definitely. Brutal heat? Weโ€™ve cooked them and then some. Our goal is to do the brunt of the research so you donโ€™t have to and can walk into the field with good bow sight and confidence.

How easy is it to operate the bow sight? Does it lose its zero after getting bumped? What about the adjustability? Do the pins starburst in daylight and become non-existent in the evening? These are just some of the things weโ€™re paying attention to when trying out a new bow sight. Along with that, we also consider the expertise and experience of trusted people around us and market demand at various price points.

Bowhunting is something Josh Kirchner thinks about every single day. He’s lucky to spend a good majority of the year with a bow in his hand.  From the alpine to the desert, he’s stalked and ambushed big game animals successfully with a bow and arrow year after year. Itโ€™s his passion, and he has a deep appreciation for the level of difficulty that goes into a successful archery hunt. The gear that compromises that success is the gear Josh wonโ€™t waste his time using.

If you’re looking to get your whole kit dialed, check out our comprehensive guide to the best archery release aids, as well as our guide to the best hunting arrows.

Buyerโ€™s Guide: How to Choose a Bow Sight

Single-Pin or Multi-Pin Bow Sight?

While single-pin sights can give you a better line of sight, multi-pin sights can give you more info about arrow trajectory; (photo/Josh Kirchner)

Perhaps the biggest question for bowhunters looking for a new sight is whether to get a single-pin or a multi-pin version. Each of them has its own pros and potential cons in the field. Weโ€™re going to break that down for you here. With any luck, youโ€™ll know exactly what to set your sights on after the fact.

Multi-Pin Sights

Multi-pin sights provide more info about objects at multiple distances, but you need to be mindful about using the correct pin; (photo/Josh Kirchner)

Advantages

As I mentioned above, multi-pin bow sights are, without a doubt, the most common bow sights used among bowhunters. There are several reasons for that. The first is they are a set-it-and-forget-it system. With the exception of using a multi-pin slider, your pins are what they are.

This leads me to another benefit: Quick yardage pin acquisition is easier with a multi-pin. When a hunter draws their bow back, they know what their pins are, and there is no โ€œhold on, let me dial,โ€ especially after an animal decides to move.

Lastly, multi-pin bow sights also shed light on arrow trajectory. For instance, if you are aiming with your 40-yard pin, but while doing that, your 20-yard pin is sitting on a branch at the halfway point, youโ€™ve likely got a deflection in your future and need to adjust.

Disadvantages

On the flip side, multi-pin sights donโ€™t offer the best of sight pictures. Thereโ€™s just a lot going on in there, which can muddy your view.

With that in mind, having a plethora of pins inside the housing also has a way of confusing folks. I canโ€™t tell you how many people Iโ€™ve heard say โ€œused the wrong pinโ€ after a miss.

Furthermore, these are a set-it-and-forget-it system, but unless youโ€™re using a slider, you wonโ€™t be stretching the distance too much in practice. There is great value in practicing long-range shooting, as it makes one even more accurate at the shorter ranges.

Single-Pin Sights

Single-pin sights provide a clear line of sight but take longer to adjust for yardage; (photo/Josh Kirchner)

Advantages

While single pins might not be as prevalent in the mountains as multi-pins, there is 100% value in running one pin versus multiple for bowhunting. The first that comes to mind is more of a clear-sight picture. There is no clutter and no such thing as using the wrong pin accidentally in those high-intensity bowhunting situations. Youโ€™ve got one pin to worry about, and thatโ€™s it.

And with that one pin, youโ€™re going to get exact yardage accuracy. A single-pin sight operates off of a sight tape, so the hunter can dial exact yardage and not have to worry about pin gapping (example: aiming between 30-40 pin for a 35-yard shot).

Single pins are also incredibly easy to sight in. Unlike having to go through sighting in each and every pin on a multi-pin, single pins only require one to sight in two different yardages โ€” a close shot and a farther shot. From that info, youโ€™ll be able to get your sight tape, and itโ€™s off to the races from there.

Disadvantages

Itโ€™s not all roses and sugar plums with single-pin sights. And really, this all comes down to one disadvantage that affects a few different things. The disadvantage is time. Single-pin sights are a time sucker because they take longer to adjust for yardage.

So, when that elk decides to move at the last minute while youโ€™re at full draw, youโ€™ll either have to let down and readjust or try to compensate and risk your precision. Itโ€™s a sticky situation either way.

This can also cause one to take an even longer amount of time coming to full draw. When things heat up quickly, you need to act quickly, and a single pin doesnโ€™t lend to that in the least. Even if youโ€™ve got all of the ranges memorized in front of you, youโ€™ll still have to adjust your sight to wherever that animal steps out.

And when you do have to adjust your sight, this is more movement youโ€™re throwing into the mix. Bowhunting is a game of inches, and the less movement, the better on our part. Having to move and adjust your sight is a hunter risking getting busted, as well as risking precious time doing so.

Final Thoughts

(Photo/Josh Kirchner)

Choosing between a single-pin and multi-pin bow sight all comes down to comfort and personal preference with a sprinkle of your own hunting style. I know folks that just prefer not to monkey around with remembering which pin to use in the heat of the moment, so they shoot a single.

A popular tactic for ambush hunting from a tree or ground blind. And then I know folks that are diehard spot and stalk hunters, and they feel they need those multiple pins in order to act quickly when that opportunity finally arises.

Whatever it is, pick one, run with it, and know how to use it โ€” because the most important thing of all is being able to put the arrow where it needs to go, right behind the pin.

(photo/Josh Kirchner)

FAQ

What is the best sight for a bow?

The one that fits your style the best.ย  With that said we stand behind our top pick of the Black Gold Ascent Verdict.

What is the range of a typical bow sight?

60 yards with most bow sights is very attainable.  However, there are many that can now reach out past 100 yards

What bow sight has the brightest pins?

Having the brightest pins is not always favorable.  You want pins that are just right.  Sights like the Garmin Xero A1i allow you to change pin brightness digitally.  And then sights like the Black Gold Ascent Verdict have features (photochromatic shell) that will naturally manage how much light the pin fibers are collecting.

What distances should I sight my bow at?

You should sight your bow at the distances you are comfortable shooting as well as the distances that reflect your hunting environment.  A common multi-pin configuration though would start at 20 yards and escalate 10 yards at a time from there. 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 would be an example of a 5-pin sight configuration.

How far is too far to shoot a deer with a bow?

The distance that is too far to shoot a deer with a bow is the distance at which you begin to lose confidence and accuracy.  This is going to vary from hunter to hunter.  For some, it might be 40 yards.  For others, it might be 70 yards.  Environmental factors also come into play here like how much the wind is gusting and rain, as well as how alert the deer is.

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