Ammo in Apex Legends: Types, rarity and differences

Alexandra W

Alexandra W

Apex Legends ammo is not all the same! We breakdown the types, rarity and differences between them from bullet drop to damage.

With an ever changing weapon meta, it's crucial that you rock the right Ammo in Apex Legends. Every weapon utilizes different ammunition. Some legends prefer fighting up close, and others sniping from distance.

Regardless of your playstyle, it's important to know details surrounding your favorite weapons and its ammo.

What is the loot distribution for the different ammo types?

Season 18 begins on August 8 and it’ll bring some major changes to the current weapon meta. This includes a complete overhaul of the Charge Rifle and a significant nerf to all SMGs. While the Apex Legends weapon meta is always changing, it’s important to have an understanding of how easily you’ll be able to pick up ammo. The most recent loot percentages for ammo are as follows:

Ammo
Current loot percentages
 Energy Ammo30.93%
 Heavy Rounds27.84%
 Light Rounds25.77%
 Sniper Ammo13.4%
 Shotgun Shells2.06%
Apex Legends ammo distribution according to Apex Legends Wiki

If you are a consistent shotgun user don't fret! While the spawn rate of shotgun shells is by far the lowest, the spawn rate of the shotguns themselves is relatively common and it only takes 16 shells to fill an inventory slot. This means even though the ammo alone does not spawn very often, you can pick up your shells from the numerous shotguns in the loot pool.

Differences between Apex Legends ammo types

Energy ammo

Energy weapons are definitely a solid part of the current meta and will continue to be so, especially since Season 18 is bringing zero nerfs to the Nemesis. There are six weapons that use energy ammo and all of them will be available as ground loot throughout the season.

  • Nemesis
  • Havoc
  • Devotion
  • L-Star
  • Volt
  • Triple Take
  • Devotion

Energy weapons come with a variety of perks. Two of the most noticeable and valuable are the projectile speed and the flight path. These weapons have very low projectile drop due to their speed which is most prevalent in mid to long range engagements.

Since its release in Season 16, the Nemesis has remained a top tier weapon choice.
Since its release in Season 16, the Nemesis has remained a top tier weapon choice.

Apex Legends energy ammunition and weapon statistics

Name
Ammo
Damage (Body/Head/Legs)
DPS
RPM
Mag Size
Reload
Havoc-AR
Energy
18/32/15
202
672
24/28/32/36
3.2/3.09/2.99/2.88s
Nemesis-AR
Energy
17/30/13
180-196
637-692
20/24/28/32
2.7/2.61/2.52/2.43s
Volt-SMG
Energy
15/23/12
180
720
19/21/23/26
2.03/1.96/1.89/1.83s
L-Star-LMG
Energy
16/24/14
160
600
Infinite
2.21s
Devotion-LMG
Energy
15/23/13
75-225
300-900
36/40/44/48
3.63/3.51/3.39/3.27s
Triple Take-Marksman
Energy
21x3/37x3/19x3
85
81
6/7/8/10
3.06/2.96/2.85/2.75s

Heavy ammo

Heavy ammo weapons can hang their hat on the fact that they tend to have a higher DPS (damage per shot). This positive is counter balanced by the fact that heavy weapons usually have a slower rate of fire and more bullet drop. This can make using them at range challenging for those that don't know recoil patterns. There are currently 5 weapons that utilize heavy ammo:

  • 30-30 Repeater
  • C.A.R. SMG
  • Hemlok Burst AR
  • Prowler Burst PDW
  • VK-47 Flatline
The C.A.R. smg utilizes both heavy and light ammo and is absolutely lethal up close
The C.A.R. smg utilizes both heavy and light ammo and is absolutely lethal up close

Apex Legends heavy ammunition and weapon statistics

Name
Ammo
Damage (Body/Head/Legs)
DPS
RPM
Mag Size
Reload
Flatline-AR
Heavy
18/32/14
180
600
20/25/28/30
3.1/3/2.89/2.79s
Hemlok-AR
Heavy
23/40/17
159
414
30/39
2.57s
CAR-SMG
Light/Heavy
13/20/10
202
930
19/21/23/26
2.13/2.06/1.99/1.92s
Prowler-SMG
Heavy
15/22/12
174
697
20/25/30/35
2.6/2.51/2.43/2.34s
30-30 Repeater-Marksman
Heavy
42-57/74-100/36-48
97
139
6/8/10/12
0.6s/bullet

Light ammo

Weapons using light ammo usually have a much higher fire rate but do less damage per round. Recoil control is integral with weapons with higher fire rates (R-99, R-301, RE-45, M-600 Spitfire). This makes light weapons (particularly those with faster fire rates) good for short to medium range. The bullet drop on light weapons is pretty substantial in comparison to some other weapon categories. The weapons that use light ammo are below:

  • Alternator SMG
  • C.A.R. SMG
  • G7 Scout
  • M-600 Spitfire
  • P2020 Pistol
  • R-301 Carbine
  • R-99 SMG
  • RE-45 Auto
The R-301 is considered an 'S' tier weapon and is one of the most user friendly in the game
The R-301 is considered an 'S' tier weapon and is one of the most user friendly in the game

Apex Legends light ammunition and weapon statistics

Name
Ammo
Damage (Body/Head/Legs)
DPS
RPM
Mag Size
Reload
R-301 Carbine-AR
Light
13/23/10
176
810
18/20/25/28
3.2/3.09/2.99/2.88s
CAR-SMG
Light/Heavy
13/20/10
202
930
19/21/23/26
2.13/2.06/1.99/1.92s
R-99-SMG
Light
12/18/10
216
1080
19/21/24/27
2.45/2.37/2.29/2.21s
Alternator-SMG
Light
16/24/13
160
600
19/22/25/27
2.23/2.16/2.08/2.01s
Spitfire-LMG
Light
18/27/15
162
540
35/40/45/50
4.2/4.06/3.92/3.78s
G7 Scout-Marksman
Light
32/56/24
128
240
10/15/18/20
2.7/2.61/2.52/2.43s
RE-45-Pistol
Light
12/18/11
156
780
25
1.95s
P2020-Pistol
Light
18/27/16
126
420
14/16/18/21
1.25s

Sniper ammo

Sniper ammo is used by the four weapons in the loot pool. It is the second rarest ammo in the loot pool and 28 rounds fills a slot in your inventory. A huge benefit to utilizing snipers is the ability to deal collateral damage to your enemies. Snipers are powerful enough to fire through enemy legends and deal damage to multiple opponents with a single round (with the exception of the charge rifle). The four weapons that use sniper ammunition are:

  • Charge rifle
  • Longbow DMR
  • Sentinel
  • Wingman
Sniper ammo holds 28 rounds per inventory slot and has one of the lower spawn rates in the game
Sniper ammo holds 28 rounds per inventory slot and has one of the lower spawn rates in the game

Apex Legends sniper ammunition and weapons statistics

Name
Ammo
Damage (Body/Head/Legs)
DPS
RPM
Mag Size
Reload
Charge Rifle-SniperSniper3x15/4x15/3x15+45392665.1/4.93/4.75/4.59s
Longbow-SniperSniper55/118/4472786/8/10/123.66/3.54/3.41/3.29s
Sentinel-SniperSniper70/140/6336-4531-384/5/6/73.6/3.48/3.36/3.24s
Wingman-PistolSniper45/97/411171566/7/8/92.1s

Shotgun shells

Shotgun shells are statistically the rarest ammo type in Apex Legends. Although this may seem like a viable reason to avoid their use, shotgun availability and the need for less ammo bolsters their cred. Shotgun shells break apart and fire pellets at enemy targets.

Pellets do varying damage for the three shotguns in the loot pool. They are high risk and high reward weapons that are most effective up close. While the bullet drop on shotguns is low, the pellet spread promotes shotgun use in close quarters if you want high damage dealt to your opponents. The four shotguns in the loot pool are below.

  • EVA-8 Auto
  • Mozambique
  • Peacekeeper
  • Mastiff
Shotgun ammo only holds 16 per inventory slot, but its high damage and low rate of fire makes them very useful for short range fights
Shotgun ammo only holds 16 per inventory slot, but its high damage and low rate of fire makes them very useful for short range fights

Apex Legends shotgun ammunition and weapon statistics

Name
Ammo
Damage (Body/Head/Legs)
DPS
RPM
Mag Size
Reload
PeacekeeperShotgun9x11/11x11/9x1173/78/83/8544/47/50/5153.5/3.38/3.27/3.15s
MastiffShotgun11x8/14x8/11x897/107/111/11666/73/76/795Segmented
MozambiqueShotgun15x3/19x3/15x399/114/124/134132/152/165/17862.4s
EVA-8Shotgun7x8/9x8/7x8134/119144/12783/2.9/2.79/2.7s

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