Crossbows
What is a good starter crossbow?
Four checks that rule out most bad first purchases, and the reason each one matters more than the speed figure on the box.
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Ranked
Quick picks
| # | Product | Speed | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank 1 | Wicked Ridge Rampage XS | 390 fps | 8.8 | $649.99Amazon |
| Rank 2 |  CenterPoint Tradition 405 | 405 fps | 7.9 | $284.51Amazon |
| Rank 3 |  Killer Instinct Boss 405 | 405 fps | 8.1 | $299.99Amazon |
| Rank 4 |  Barnett Alpha 410 | 8.3 | $549.00Amazon | |
| Rank 5 |  Barnett Wildcat CRX | 280 fps | 7.2 | $239.99Amazon |
A good starter crossbow is one you can cock on day one, that arrives with a calibrated scope rather than a bare red dot, that publishes its own speed and width figures, and that does not require proprietary arrows. Speed is the least important of those.
Most bad first crossbow purchases are not bad bows. They are bows bought on the one number printed largest on the box, which then turn out to need two hundred dollars of accessories, or to be impossible to cock without help, or to be unshoppable for a target because nobody published the speed.
Check one: can you cock it, today?
Not with practice. Not after you buy a crank later. Today, in your driveway, with whatever came in the box. If the answer is uncertain, buy a bow with an integrated crank — the Rampage XS publishes 5 lb of effort — or one that explicitly documents a compatible crank.
A rope cocker publishes a 50 percent reduction. On a 185 lb bow that is about 93 lb, pulled upward from a crouch. Most healthy adults manage it. If you are not sure you are in that group, the answer is a crank and the question is settled.
Check two: is the package complete?
Price the gaps before you compare bows. A complete first setup needs:
- A scope with calibrated aim points, not a red dot
- A cocking aid you can operate
- A quiver and at least three bolts matched to the bow
- A target rated for the bow's speed — this is the one people forget
- String wax and rail lube
- Broadheads, if you are hunting
That list is realistically $150-250 on top of the bow. A $400 bow with the scope, quiver, arrows, cocking aid and lube included can be cheaper in total than a $280 bow without them. The accessories checklist prices it properly.
Check three: does the listing publish the figures?
This sounds pedantic until you try to buy a target. You cannot confirm a 425 fps target is safe for your bow if nobody published the bow's speed. You cannot set a scope's speed dial without it either. And you cannot tell whether the bow fits your blind without a cocked-width figure.
Two bows on this page do not publish a speed. We have said so in each entry, and it costs them rubric points. For a first bow, buy one that tells you what it is.
Check four: are the consumables standard?
Some bows restrict your arrows. The Xpedition Xtraction specifies XIT-20 bolts only; the CenterPoint Hellion requires CP400 lighted nocks; Ravin's whole line uses proprietary arrows and nocks. None of that is wrong, and all of it is a running cost you should know about before the first six-pack.
In detail
Five bows that pass the checks
Wicked Ridge Rampage XS
An ACUdraw crank built into a 31.5-inch bow that shoots 390 fps, from TenPoint's value brand and made in America. This is the cheapest bow on the site with an integrated 5-pound crank, which makes it the default recommendation when your shoulder, not your budget, is the limiting factor.
| Published spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Speed | 390 fps |
| Cocking effort | 5 lb |
| Overall length | 31.5 in |
| Cocking aid | ACUdraw crank, integrated |
| Trigger pull | 3.5 lb |
| Scope | Lighted 3x Pro-View, 20/30/40/50 yd |
| Included | Three Match 400 carbon Alpha-Nock arrows, quiver |
What it does well
- 5 lb cocking effort from a built-in crank at an entry-level price
- 31.5 inches overall is short enough to swing inside a blind
- Made in the United States at a price point where that is unusual
- Safety wings and an enclosed trigger guard keep fingers below the flight deck
Where it falls short
Our rubric
- 9.4
- 7.8
- 8.0
- 8.8
- 8.6
- 9.4
CenterPoint Tradition 405
405 fps with the Whisper silencing system and a cocking sled in the box, in a conventional 15-inch-cocked frame. If noise sits higher on your list than blind width, this is the cheap bow to look at.
| Published spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Speed | 405 fps |
| Cocked width | 15 in |
| Uncocked width | 18 in |
| Cocking aid | Cocking sled, included |
| Noise control | Whisper multi-point vibration reduction |
| Scope | 4x32 illuminated |
| Included | Attached quiver, rail lube, three 20 in arrows |
What it does well
- Whisper silencing at the bottom of the price range
- A cocking sled is included, which aligns the string evenly
- Attached quiver and rail lube in the box
Where it falls short
Our rubric
- 6.2
- 8.6
- 8.8
- 6.6
- 7.6
- 9.0
Killer Instinct Boss 405
405 fps, 134 ft-lb, 6.7 pounds, and a 6-position stock with an adjustable foregrip so the bow actually fits you. The 14.75-inch cocked width is the limitation. For a shooter between sizes — a smaller adult, a teenager still growing — the adjustability is worth more than two inches of width.
| Published spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Speed | 405 fps |
| Kinetic energy | 134 ft-lb |
| Weight | 6.7 lb |
| Cocked width | 14.75 in |
| Overall length | 33.5-36 in, adjustable |
| Cocking aid | Rope cocker, included |
| Included | 4x32 IR scope, quiver, three HYPR Lite bolts, rail lube, string dampeners |
What it does well
- A 6-position stock and X-Lok foregrip fit a wide range of shooters
- 134 ft-lb published at a budget price
- 6.7 pounds with a Micro-Lite aluminum barrel
- Limited lifetime warranty on non-wearable parts
Where it falls short
Our rubric
- 6.4
- 8.6
- 7.8
- 6.8
- 8.8
- 9.2
Barnett Alpha 410
Barnett ships this one with the crank cocking device already installed, which is the thing most bows at this price make you buy separately. Add the illuminated multi-reticle scope, quiver, arrows and lube and it is a complete first setup with no cocking-aid decision left to make.
| Published spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Cocking aid | Crank cocking device, installed |
| Scope | 4x32 illuminated red/green multi-reticle |
| Arrows | Two 20 in Headhunter carbon, 100 gr points |
| Quiver | Lightweight side-mount, 3 arrow |
| Included | String and rail lube wax |
| Speed | |
| Cocked width |
What it does well
- The crank comes installed, not boxed separately or sold as an accessory
- Complete package: scope, quiver, arrows, wax
- Multi-reticle illuminated scope at a mid-range price
Where it falls short
Our rubric
- 8.8
- 8.4
- 7.6
- 7.6
- 7.6
- 8.8
Barnett Wildcat CRX
280 fps at 6.1 pounds with a red dot, three arrows, broadheads, a quiver and a cocking device in the bundle. It is the least bow on this site and it is priced like it. Buy it to learn on, or if your season opens in three days and you have two hundred dollars.
| Published spec | Value |
|---|---|
| Speed | 280 fps |
| Weight | 6.1 lb |
| Cocking aid | Cocking device included; Rope-Hold technology |
| Sight | Red dot |
| Included | Three 20 in Headhunter arrows, broadheads, side-mount quiver |
| Safety | Anti-dry-fire, finger safety reminders, pass-through foregrip |
| Cocked width |
What it does well
- Complete and shootable out of the box, broadheads included
- 6.1 pounds with the quiver on
- Anti-dry-fire on a budget bow
Where it falls short
Our rubric
- 6.4
- 5.4
- 6.6
- 7.8
- 9.0
- 9.2
What you do not need in a first crossbow
- Over 400 fps. Every bow here kills a deer inside 40 yards, and above 400 fps your target and broadheads have to keep up.
- A rangefinding scope. A $30 handheld rangefinder in your pocket does the same job for the first season.
- The narrowest bow available. Unless you already hunt from a tight blind, width is a preference rather than a constraint.
- Small-diameter arrows. A genuine penetration advantage, and a permanent consumable tax. Not a first-bow decision.
What to do in the first week
Mount and zero the scope at 20 yards, verify at 40, set the speed dial to the bow's published fps, shoot three broadheads into a broadhead-capable target to confirm they group with your field points, then wax the string and lube the rail. That is the whole process and it takes an afternoon. The step-by-step is in the first setup checklist.
