I stop and think carefully about recommendations I make to people because proselytizing the Second Amendment is part of my religion. That said, I would recommend this rifle to almost anyone. For what you pay, you get a superlative value. I would be willing to bet there are SWAT teams out there with lower quality rifles than the Ruger AR-556.
If you don’t know anything about AR-15s, this is an outstanding place to start. If you want this to be your home defender, your truck gun, your variminter, or your DMR, you can set it up to do an admirable job. From here, you can also learn what you prefer and move in that direction. Should you choose to upgrade this, that, or the other, you still have a good base rifle that will last you for years and serve you well.
The standard Ruger-556 offers an MSRP of $819.
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In search of an AR-15, but prefer something other than the Ruger AR-556? Check out our Buyer’s Guide to see in-stock AR-15s at Guns.com.