In this article, we will look at the differences and the similarities between a compound bow and a crossbow. We’re going to compare and contrast the different features and benefits of each one and then decide the winner that you would want to carry into the field.

Crossbow vs Compound bow-which weapon is best? Although the answer is whichever one suits your hunting styles and needs, it is still important to look at different features of each and compare the two weapons according to each criterion.

Speed

Our first focus will be on the speed of each hunting weapon. There’s no doubt that when it comes to the speed of a bow and  arrow, the crossbow is going to win almost every time.

Today’s crossbows are shooting in the high 300 feet per second to the mid 400 feet per second range, which is substantially faster than pretty much any compound bow on the market. A typical crossbow is a 330 foot per second bow and go upto the low 400s. So the speed department is definitely won by the crossbow.

Accuracy

All bowhunters know that speed isn’t what kills,accuracy is what kills. You have to hit your target in the right spot in order to be an effective and efficient hunter. When it comes to accuracy which one of these weapons wins?

Both a compound bow and a crossbow are more than capable of being extremely accurate in the hands of the right shooter. But  crossbows get a nod in terms of general accuracy for one reason.

A crossbow has a lot less variables when you shoot it because of the way a crossbow is designed. When you pull the trigger to shoot it, you don’t have to worry about torque like you do with a compound bow. You don’t necessarily have to worry about things like cam-timing and rest-tuning that you need to worry about in order to get compound bows to shoot properly.

A lot of hunters or even non-hunters are able to pick up a crossbow and shoot it very accurately in a very short period of time. So in the department of accuracy, a crossbow wins.

Effective Range

While we’re discussing accuracy and the ease of shooting these weapons, let’s discuss the effective range in a bow hunting situation. A common misconception that people have about the differences between a crossbow and a compound bow is that  the vast majority of bow hunters believe that the maximum effective range on a whitetail deer with a compound bow is going to be about 40 yards.

There are going to be some folks that will shoot beyond that and some that don’t shoot quite that far but 40 yards seems to be the de facto standard for most bowhunters. When it comes to crossbows, they are marketed as  your next rifle or a hundred yard shooting device and there’s no doubt about it.

Crossbows are certainly capable of being extremely accurate at long ranges but accuracy at long ranges doesn’t necessarily translate into the ability to hunt with them at those ranges. Most experts- including a lot of the crossbow manufacturers- believe that crossbows are still a 40 or 50 yard weapon.

So regardless of which hunting weapon has a better effective range, there are a lot of variables in a hunting situation-like the hunter’s blood flowing to his heart, pumping a lot of adrenaline- that affect accuracy at  longer ranges which inevitably is going to be diminished in a hunting situation for the vast majority of people.

Effective range of these weapons for white-tailed deer is  going to be about 40 yards with a compound bow and 40 to 50 yards with a crossbow. So, really in the end there is not much difference between these weapons and we call it a draw.

Noise

This is an area where the compound bow really outshines the crossbow. The ability of an animal to hear the sound of a bow is unparalleled. When you shoot a compound bow, it is significantly quieter than a crossbow and the reason for that is very simple.

Crossbows are generating a lot more power and energy with  speed that comes with a trade-off of a lot more noise. Today’s crossbows are significantly quieter than they were in the past as they have a lot of string dampening and silencing on them that you can see built into these bows but they are still considerably louder than a compound bow.

Weight

Let’s dive into another area where  the compound bow really outshines the crossbow-the weight of the bow. When you see a compound bow, you see it has got a pretty big and heavy stabilizer on the front and it weighs six and a half pounds on average. Crossbows by contrast, weigh between eight and a half and nine pounds so the weight of the compound bow is significantly less.

Even if the weight difference is only two and a half pounds but if you look at it as a percentage of the weight, the compound bow is about 25 to 30 percent lighter than a crossbow making them a little bit easier to carry around the woods with you.

Maneuverability

Today’s crossbows are significantly narrower and have a much smaller footprint than the ones of days gone by when a crossbow was basically a vertical, a big bow or a horizontal bow which took up a lot of space. New and modern crossbows are more maneuverable today than they used to be.

But there’s no doubt that when you get up in a tree stand with any of these weapons, a  compound bow is going to be much more comfortable than a crossbow. Crossbows are really good for hunting off the ground but when getting up in a tree stand, always go for the compound bow.

Follow Up Shots

Finally, our last criterion is going to be follow-up shots. In the majority of hunting situations, a crossbow is a single shot weapon. It’s going to be very difficult for anybody to shoot and possibly miss an animal with a crossbow and then be able to re-cock that bow and get an arrow on it quick enough and quiet enough without a lot of movement in order to get another shot.

Everyone can miss a shot and it will certainly  happen a lot more with a compound bow than it’s going to with a crossbow.

With a crossbow while standing on a smaller tree stand platform, it is very difficult to take a follow up shot but your chances of taking an accurate first shot with a crossbow are more anywhere you hunt. So it is kind of a paradox that everyone gets out of in his or her own way. We can’t declare a winner on this one.

Final Words

As you see, there are many pros and cons to each of the two hunting weapons. Crossbow does better at speed, accuracy and range while compound bow is better at being less noisy, lighter and more manoeuvrable. Choose what best suits your style of hunting.

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