You picked up the pistol of your dreams. You acquired a decent holster for it. You sorted out your concealed carry permit or you live in a Constitutional Carry state. You're going to go out into the world, armed and ready. Your gun, spare magazines, and some accessories. Will that old Van Heusen belt hold up?
No, it won't.
Your Best Gun Belts For The Money
| Gun Belt | Cost | Buy Now |
|---|---|---|
| Bravo Concealment Cinturon | $44.54 | Buy Now! |
| Magpul El Burro | $46.63 | Buy Now! |
| 5.11 Operator | $39.99 | Buy Now! |
| Blade-Tech Competition | $49.99 | Buy Now! |
A Gun Belt Is The Most Overlooked Accessory
Everyone, myself included, focuses on the gun, training, ammo, and holster for their first outing. A belt never factors into their worldview. Up until now, a belt was just a strip of leather or cloth that held up your pants and maybe acted as an anchor point for an iPhone. Now, you're adding a loaded firearm (2 pounds or so), a few spare magazines (1-2 pounds), and maybe something like a knife or some accessory like a flashlight (1 pound). 5 extra pounds of stuff, rubbing away at the material of the belt as you move around. Your old standby belt will fall apart. It happened to me, hopefully it won't happen to you.
You'll need something heavy-duty and sturdy, i.e. a dedicated purpose-built gun belt for everyday carry use.
What Makes A Gun Belt Different?
What makes a gun belt different from other belts is that gun belts have internal reinforcement inside the belt. Material on the inside, be it kydex plastic, steel, or some other reinforcement is what separates out a gun belt from your off-the-rack Sears special. Reinforcement stops the belt from twisting from the weight of a pistol and accesories, and it also helps spread the weight of your setup around your waist, making a gun much more comfortable to carry around for extended periods of time. The belt will provide stability and safety for your defensive sidearm and accessories. You keep your gun holstered at 3 or 4 o'clock - and it will stay there with a good gun belt.
A belt without that stiffener sags and doesn’t distribute the pistol's weight around the body, and weight that’s distributed is easier to handle. Think about lifting a grocery bag with your whole hand, versus lifting with one finger. Your finger will turn purple from the stress, whereas your hand will be fine.
What To Look For In A Gun Belt
There's a few factors at play when looking for a great gun belt.
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Obviously size. Buy one that will fit you. Try not to gain too much weight!
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Width. Check the width of the loops on your pants. You don't want to buy a 1.75" wide belt, only to find most of your pants have 1.5" wide loops. Or vice versa.
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The look. There's plenty of styles out there. A lot of gun belts don't look any different than their non-reinforced counterparts. Magpul makes a great line of "everyday" belts. There's other, more tactical and heavier-duty models like the Bravo Concealment Cinturon.
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Purpose. Much like holsters, there's different gun belts for different purposes. Dressy ones for the formal occasions. Tactical-ish ones for the range and perhaps work/emergency use. Competition belts are a thing, even - super-specialized, stiffly reinforced belts that you can probably use as a hula hoop.
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Price. Prepare to spend $40 and up. You get what you pay for. The $10 Airsofter special is just a regular belt that looks "tactical".
The Best Gun Belts To Buy
I've run a few gun belts, and also one dearly-departed no-name Ross Dress For Less belt before I knew any better. Here are my recommendations.
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The Bravo Concealment Cinturon. This gun belt is tactical, yet stylish. The stiffened nylon webbing is rated at over 5000 pounds, and can take a beating. It's been around my waist for awhile now. The buckle has an ingenious quick-release setup making the "on-off" process easy. It's available in matte black or a Cybertruck-like brushed metal finish. Yes, I compared a belt to the Cybertruck.
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The Magpul Tejas "El Burro" Belt. This one's a little more dressy, and discreet. It's a reinforced polymer belt with a non-ferrous buckle. In other words, you don't have to take it off for airport security, though it may trip the nude-o-scope (millimeter wave) system. I traveled back and forth with the El Burro in 2018 from the Scandinavian Arctic - it's a good travel belt.
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5.11 "Operator" belt. This was actually my first gun belt. I bought it on a whim with zero research and after my normal belt gave up the ghost. It's your typical high-strength tightly-woven gun belt, with a 1.75 inch width. It's got an easy-to-use oversized buckle and is super heavy-duty.
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Blade-Tech Competition Belt. I don't compete, but I've tried this on. This dual-layer belt (two halves) essentially feels like a hula hoop. Your gear and all those spare magazines aren't going anywhere. However, it's not something for everyday use, since you have to pretty much put one belt on, then another. It's still pretty cool though.
A Gun Belt Is Essential
Your gun belt is an essential part of your everyday carry lifestyle. If you have the right gun, holster, and belt, everything will come together and carrying your gun will not only be comforting, but dare I say, it will be comfortable.
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