He’s Down! 4 Best Scopes For 308 In 2024 [Check It Out]

Introduced in the early 1950s, the .308 Winchester has become one of the most popular rifle calibers in use by military, law enforcement, and ordinary civilians alike today. There is also little difference between the .308 Winchester and the 7.62x51mm NATO, so a scope that you purchase for the .308 Winchester can also be used for the latter as well. Depending on what you want to do the best scope for 308 in 2024 might differ.

Short On Time? Here Is The Bullet List

• Hunting Scope For .308: Burris Scout 2-7x32 Ballistic Plex Scope
• Tactical Scope For .308: No products found.
• Long Range Scope For .308: Nikon M .308 Tactical Scope
• Budget Scope For .308: UTG SWAT Compact Rifle Scope

**Below are our more detailed reviews. Click the links above to see current prices or read customer reviews on Amazon.

So what has caused the .308 Winchester to become one of the most widely used rifles in the world? The answer is because of its versatility. The .308 is excellent for tactical use due to its long range accuracy and knockdown power. It is for these reasons that the .308 Winchester is equally capable when it comes to big game hunting.

Is .308 Winchester the most versatile rifle caliber of all time or even the best one? That’s up to you to determine, but what everyone should agree upon is that any .308 caliber rifle, bolt action or semi-automatic, needs the best scope possible in order to deliver the results that are as perfect as possible. A scope not only allows you to zoom in on a target at long distances with your .308 rifle, but it also allows you to aim precisely with that rifle and to provide you with a wide viewing range of any area that’s a ways away from you.

What is the best scope for a .308 rifle? That’s the question that we’re going to answer in this article. First, we’re going to talk about the different kinds of features that your .308 scope should have followed by an outline and discussion of some of our top recommended products.

Top .308 Rifle Scope Features

Variable Power

With enough practice and a high-quality optic, it’s quite easy to become proficient with the .308 Winchester at distances of 300 to 400 yards. Beyond that, you’re probably going to need a larger caliber such as the .300 Win Mag or a variant of the .338. Since you’re likely going to be practicing shooting your .308 in the 250 yard to 350 yard range, the best scope for your .308 rifle is going to be a low to mid power variable scope. This means that the objective of your scope will need to have an objective of around 40mm and a magnification of at least 2-7x. 

There’s a reason why scopes with this kind of variable power are preferred by both hunters and law enforcement/military units. A scope that has variable power means that it can be magnified to make the target appear larger and closer, giving you more precise aim. In other words, you’ll have more control over the shooting process as a whole if you select a scope that has variable power.

Field of View

Another feature that your .308 scope has to have is to provide you with a wide field of view. Obviously by looking through a scope, regardless of the scope that you’re using or the rifle that you’re shooting, you are effectively zooming in on a specific area. Nonetheless, the larger the field of view that your scope provides, the better view of your target you will have as well.

Lenses

Finally, the third feature that your rifle scope must have is to provide you with a crystal clear image. The best .308 rifle scopes have a coating over the lenses that reduce glare and provide you with a clearer image of the target. The more coatings that are over the lenses, the higher the quality of the image will be. If you’ve heard of the term ‘multi-coated lenses,’ this is what it means.

All in all, the .308 Winchester round is a great cartridge for medium to big game, competition shooting, and tactical use alike. There are other factors that affect your accuracy, including your steadiness when you hold the rifle, the type of ammunition that you’re using, and the distance from the target, but your scope is going to be the biggest factor of them all.

That’s why in order to get the best performance out of your .308 caliber rifle, you need the best rifle scope for a .308 that you can get. For the rest of this article, we’re going to talk about four of the very best .308 scopes currently available on the market and why you should definitely consider each of them.

Best .308 Scope in 2024

Best Hunting Scope For .308:

Burris Scout 2-7x32 Ballistic Plex Scope

Probably the best scope for a .308 hunting rifle is going to be the Burris Scout 2-7×32 Ballistic Plex Scope. You’ll notice in the title of this scope that this is a variable power scope that can be easily adjusted. This is a feature that your .308 scope must meet and makes it perfect for shooting both mid range and long range. Beyond the magnification power of this scope, the Burris Scout is also high quality. It includes multi-coated lenses to reduce glare and increase the image quality of the scope.

As far as cons are concerned, the Burris Scout does not sell with mounting rings, so you’ll need to buy those separately. Keep in mind that not all mounting rings are capable of being used with all kinds of rifles, so make sure that any mounting rings you buy are indeed compatible between both the scope and the rifle.

Despite the cons, the reason why the Burris Scout is one of the best .308 scopes on the market is because of its mid range price. For the magnification and lens quality that you’re getting, you can plan on spending around $350 for this scope. That’s not exactly cheap, but it’s certainly not expensive like some of the several thousand dollar scopes either.

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Best Tactical Scope For .308:

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Leupold is a huge name in the scopes and optic world. Even people who aren’t extremely knowledgeable on scopes have more than likely heard of the Leupold name before. The Mark AR MOD 1 Rifle Scope from Leupold is also the best .308 tactical scope that is currently available on the market. Yes, it’s hard to go wrong with Leupold at all, which is why it makes our Best Rifle Scope list. But there are other factors that make this specific Leupold scope one of the very best that you can buy.

The Mod 1 scope is one of the most waterproof and fogproof .308 rifle scopes there is because of its argon and nitrogen purged tube. Furthermore, the magnification is 3-9x power with a 40mm objective lens. In other words, you couldn’t ask for anything more in a .308 scope when it comes to magnification. You’ll also get a clear image when you peer through the scope thanks to its multi-coated lenses and a MilDot reticle that can be adjusted both horizontally and vertically.

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Best Long Range Scope For .308:

Nikon M .308 Tactical Scope

Even though Nikon is a company that is more commonly associated with cameras, anyone who has used their scopes will speak highly of the quality Nikon has invested into them. The Nikon M .308 scope in particular is one of the best long range scopes for a .308. The reason why is because the M .308 scope has a total 4×16 power magnification allowing you to really zoom in on targets at far distances. Furthermore the scope is fully coated for maximum light transmission.

Nikon has also invested just as much into the durability of this scope as they have into the magnification quality of it. This is a heavy duty rifle scope that will be able to sustain abuse and still provide you with the precision and accuracy qualities that you need. What’s more is that Nikon ships this scope with a 20 MOA scope mount. Not only is this something that many scope manufacturers don’t do, but a 20 MOA mount enables you to angle your scope at practically any angle so you can make the shots you desire. Great for sniper use and long range use.

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Best Budget Scope For .308:

UTG SWAT Compact Rifle Scope

This is a budget .308 rifle scope that can be had for less than $100. You may think that a low price like that means a drop in quality, but the opposite is true. First of all, this is a compact rifle scope as the name informs us. It fits just as well on a bolt action rifle such as Remington 700 as it would on a semi-automatic such as an AR-10.

UTG has still installed features on this scope that you would expect from a more expensive model. Take for instance the lenses that are fully coated with a sunshade technology to give you optimum light. You may also be impressed by the completely sealed nitrogen tube that makes this scope equally as waterproof as it is fog proof.

For a shooter on a budget or a shooter who just wants a basic but high quality scope, the UTG Swat Compact is one of the best scopes for a Remington 700 .308 or a tactical semi automatic rifle alike.

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Best Scope For .308 Rifle Conclusion 

These four .308 scopes are easily the highest quality scopes that the market has to offer. Now the real question comes: Which of these scopes is the best for you?

Only you can answer that question, and you can answer it by asking yourself why you need a .308 scope. Are you looking to getting into competition shooting where you may need to place shots at 600 or more yards? If so, the Nikon M .308 is one of the best long range scopes that you can buy.  Are you looking for a scope that you will be using for taking down hogs, deer, or elk? If that’s the case, there’s no reason not to go with the Burris Scout. Maybe a more expensive scope isn’t in the budget and you want the best scope you can for a $100 or less? If this is your circumstance, then the UTG SWAT Compact offers everything you could ask for that kind of money.

Right now there are literally millions of different .308 Winchester caliber rifles all over the world. They come in the form of basic bolt-action guns such as the Remington Model 700 to more advanced semi-automatic battle rifles like the Springfield M1A or the AR-10 models. What each of these rifles share in common is that their performance, when it comes to shooting accurately at long distances, will always be enhanced with the addition of a scope.

Now that we’ve shown you what the best choices are when it comes to a scope for a .308 caliber rifle, the only next step is to decide what you will be using your .308 rifle for, and then select the scope out of this list of four that best suits your needs. If you can do that, your scope will serve you and your rifle well for many years to come.  

Thank you for visiting Reloadingpresso.com. If our article has helped you make a decision about the best rifle scope for you, please click through to Amazon using one of our buy buttons. We are an Amazon Affiliate website and how we keep our website running is through the small commission we receive when you purchase a rifle scope from Amazon after visiting our site. There is no extra expense for you – the price is the same as if you went to Amazon directly. If you’re looking for more than just the best rifle scope, please review our Best Bullet Puller Buyers Guide and our Best Gun Safe Buyers Guide.