The submachine gun is a weird contradiction. It’s a tool designed for the most intimate, violent encounters imaginable, yet it’s often defined by how much lead it can waste in a heartbeat. Honestly, most people get their info on these from video games or action movies, where the "spray and pray" trope makes every SMG look like a handheld garden hose. But the reality is a lot more technical—and a lot more interesting.
If you look at any list of submachine guns, you’re looking at a timeline of industrial desperation and engineering genius. These guns were born in the mud of the Great War because bolt-action rifles were basically useless when you were clearing a trench three feet wide. Since then, they've evolved from heavy, wooden-stocked "trench brooms" to the polymer, closed-bolt precision tools used by counter-terrorist units today.
The Origins: Where the List of Submachine Guns Begins
The MP18 is the grandaddy of them all. Designed by Hugo Schmeisser, it was the first practical submachine gun ever fielded. Before this, "automatic fire" meant a massive machine gun that required a crew of three and a tripod. The Germans realized that if a single soldier could carry that kind of firepower into a trench, the game changed.
It used the 9x19mm Parabellum round. That’s a key distinction. By definition, a submachine gun is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire pistol cartridges. If it fires a rifle round, it’s an assault rifle. If it’s belt-fed, it’s a machine gun. It’s that simple, though people still mix them up constantly.
The Thompson and the Prohibition Era
You can't talk about a list of submachine guns without the "Tommy Gun." It’s the most iconic American firearm of the 20th century, but it was almost a commercial failure. General John T. Thompson envisioned it as a "trench broom" for WWI, but the war ended before it could be shipped.
So, it went to the civilian market.
The Thompson M1921 was expensive. It cost about $200 back then, which is roughly $3,000 today. Because of that price tag, it didn't really go to the average Joe; it went to the people who could afford it: high-end security firms, the Postal Inspection Service, and, famously, organized crime syndicates. The "Chicago Typewriter" earned its name because of the rhythmic clack-clack-clack of its .45 ACP rounds. It was heavy, over-engineered, and incredibly reliable, but it was a nightmare to manufacture quickly. When WWII hit, the military had to strip it down into the M1 and M1A1 versions just to keep up with demand.
WWII and the Rise of the "Stamped" SMG
By 1940, the world realized that beautiful wood stocks and finely machined steel were a luxury no one could afford in a total war. This is where the list of submachine guns takes a turn toward the "ugly but functional."
The British Sten is the poster child for this. It was essentially a pipe with a trigger. It cost about $10 to make. It was crude, it jammed if you looked at it wrong, and it had a habit of firing if you dropped it, but it put automatic fire into the hands of millions.
- The MP40: Often called the "Schmeisser" (even though Schmeisser didn't design it), this German gun pioneered the folding stock. It was made of stamped metal and plastic (Bakelite), making it light and compact for paratroopers.
- The PPSh-41: The Soviet Union’s answer. It had a chrome-lined chamber, which meant it could handle the filthy conditions of the Eastern Front. It used a 71-round drum magazine that was notoriously difficult to load, but once it started spitting fire, it was terrifying.
- The M3 "Grease Gun": America’s answer to the Sten. It looked like a mechanic's tool. It was slow-firing, which actually made it easier to control. Tank crews loved them because they were small enough to stow in a cramped turret.
The Cold War Icons: Uzi and MP5
After the war, the philosophy shifted. We didn't need millions of cheap guns anymore; we needed specialized tools for a new kind of conflict.
The Uzi, designed by Uziel Gal in Israel, changed the silhouette of the SMG forever. By using a "telescoping bolt" that wraps around the breech of the barrel, Gal made the gun much shorter without sacrificing barrel length. It’s balanced right over the grip, like a handgun. It became the symbol of the Israeli Defense Forces and, strangely, a favorite of the U.S. Secret Service for decades.
📖 Related: Recycle MacBook Apple Store: How to Get Paid (or Just Feel Good) for Your Old Tech
Why the MP5 is the Gold Standard
If you ask any tactical expert to name the most important entry on a list of submachine guns, they’ll say the Heckler & Koch MP5.
Most SMGs use "blowback" operation. The weight of the bolt and a spring keep the gun closed until the bullet leaves. It’s simple but jerky. The MP5 uses "roller-delayed blowback." This is the same system HK used in their G3 battle rifles. It’s smoother, more accurate, and fires from a closed bolt.
When the British SAS stormed the Iranian Embassy in 1980 (Operation Nimrod), the world saw them carrying MP5s. Suddenly, every SWAT team in the world wanted one. It’s the gun that proved a submachine gun could be a surgical instrument, not just a blunt force object.
Modern Innovations and the PDW Shift
Lately, the list of submachine guns has been merging with a newer category: the Personal Defense Weapon (PDW).
Body armor became common. Standard 9mm rounds, which almost every SMG on this list uses, are pretty bad at punching through Kevlar. This led to the creation of the FN P90 and the HK MP7.
The P90 is a space-age looking thing with a 50-round horizontal magazine. It fires a 5.7x28mm round that is essentially a miniaturized rifle bullet. It’s tiny, has almost no recoil, and zips right through soft armor. The MP7 does something similar with a 4.6mm round.
But here’s the thing: are they still submachine guns? Purists say no because they don't use traditional pistol calibers. But in terms of their role on the battlefield, they fill the exact same niche. They are for people who need more than a pistol but can't carry a full-sized rifle—drivers, pilots, and special operations teams operating in tight urban environments.
The "Obsolete" Myth
You’ll hear "tactical bros" on the internet say the submachine gun is dead. They argue that short-barreled rifles (SBRs) like the MK18 or the SIG MCX Rattler have replaced them. Why carry a 9mm when you can carry a 5.56 rifle round in the same size package?
It’s a fair point. Rifle rounds are objectively more powerful.
However, the SMG isn't going anywhere. Why? Suppression. A submachine gun firing subsonic 9mm or .45 ACP is significantly quieter than a suppressed rifle. In covert operations, "hearing safe" matters. Also, over-penetration is a massive concern for police. A rifle round might go through the bad guy, the wall, and the neighbor’s fridge. A hollow-point 9mm from a B&T APC9—which the U.S. Army recently adopted—is much easier to manage in a crowded apartment building.
Technical Realities of the SMG
When evaluating any list of submachine guns, you have to look at the "Cycle of Operation." Most of the classic guns (Sten, M3, Uzi) are "Open Bolt."
📖 Related: Square Root of 24: What Most People Get Wrong and Why It Matters
- You pull the trigger.
- The heavy bolt slams forward.
- It strips a round, chambers it, and fires it all in one motion.
This makes the gun jump before the shot even goes off. It’s great for cooling (air flows through the barrel), but it sucks for accuracy. Modern guns like the CZ Scorpion EVO 3 or the SIG MPX fire from a "Closed Bolt," just like a standard rifle. The bolt is already forward; only the hammer or striker moves. This is why modern SMGs are so much more accurate than their predecessors.
Real-World Performance
| Model | Caliber | Rate of Fire (approx) | Notable User |
|---|---|---|---|
| MP5 | 9x19mm | 800 RPM | SAS, FBI HRT |
| KRISS Vector | .45 ACP | 1200 RPM | Law Enforcement |
| MAC-10 | .45 ACP | 1090 RPM | 1970s Special Forces |
| Beretta M12 | 9x19mm | 550 RPM | Italian Carabinieri |
The KRISS Vector is an oddball worth mentioning. It uses a "Super V" recoil system where the bolt moves down into a cavity behind the magazine instead of straight back into your shoulder. It’s an attempt to solve the "climb" that happens during full-auto fire. It’s clever engineering, but it shows just how much effort designers have to put in to make a high-rate-of-fire weapon controllable.
How to Understand Your Needs
If you are a collector or a researcher looking at a list of submachine guns, don't just look at the rate of fire. That’s a "vanity metric." A gun that fires 1,200 rounds per minute is just a gun that runs out of ammo in two seconds.
The real value of an SMG is "portability vs. controllability."
The Sig MPX is currently winning this battle because it uses a gas-piston system, making it feel like a miniature AR-15. It’s familiar to anyone trained on modern rifles. On the other hand, the Swedish Carl Gustaf m/45 (the "Swedish K") is still beloved by those who have used it because it’s incredibly simple and reliable, even if it feels like a heavy chunk of iron.
Actionable Insights for Enthusiasts
If you’re digging deeper into the world of submachine guns, here is how you should categorize your research to get the most out of it:
- Focus on Action Type: Learn the difference between simple blowback, roller-delayed, and gas-operated. This dictates how the gun feels to shoot.
- Check the Magazine Design: The magazine is usually the weakest point of any SMG. Double-stack, double-feed magazines (like the MP40 or Colt SMG) are generally more reliable and easier to load than double-stack, single-feed designs (like the Sten or Grease Gun).
- Study the "PDW" Crossover: Look into how the 300 Blackout cartridge is starting to blur the lines. An SBR in 300BLK is technically a rifle, but when suppressed with subsonic ammo, it performs exactly like a modern submachine gun with better ballistics.
- Context Matters: A gun like the MAC-10 was designed to be a "room broom" for quick, violent hits. Expecting it to hit a target at 100 yards is a misunderstanding of the tool. Match the gun to the intended engagement distance.
The submachine gun is an evolving platform. It survived the transition from wood to steel, from steel to plastic, and from open-bolt to closed-bolt. Even with the rise of short-barreled rifles, the unique requirements of suppressed fire and low over-penetration keep the SMG firmly on the list of essential tactical tools.