The 220 Swift is the faster cartridge, pushing light bullets past 4,000 feet per second. The 22-250 Remington gives up a little speed for much wider factory ammunition support and a gentler reputation for barrel wear. That turns the 220 Swift vs 22-250 Remington question into a trade between outright velocity and everything around the cartridge. For most varmint hunters the 22-250 Remington is the more practical choice, and the Swift suits the handloader chasing every last foot per second.
Both fire the same .224 inch bullets at similar weights. What separates them is case design, brass, and twist rate.
Quick comparison table
| Specification | 220 Swift | 22-250 Remington |
|---|---|---|
| Parent case | 6mm Lee Navy | .250-3000 Savage |
| Case type | Semi-rimmed, bottleneck | Rimless, bottleneck |
| Introduced | 1935, by Winchester | Wildcat from the 1930s; standardized by Remington in 1965 |
| Bullet diameter | .224 inch | .224 inch |
| Typical bullet weights | 40 to 60 grains | 40 to 60 grains |
| Factory velocity, 55 grain load | 3,680 fps | 3,680 fps |
| Common factory twist rates | 1 in 14, some 1 in 12 | 1 in 14 or 1 in 12; some current rifles 1 in 8 to 1 in 10 |
| Factory ammunition | A handful of varmint loads | Loaded by most major manufacturers |
History of the 220 Swift and the 22-250 Remington
Winchester introduced the 220 Swift in 1935 for the Model 54 bolt action rifle. It was the first factory loaded cartridge past 4,000 feet per second, with an original load driving a 48 grain bullet at about 4,100 fps, and it stayed a standard Model 70 chambering until 1964.
Most comparisons go wrong on the parent case. Grosvenor Wotkyns built the prototype from the .250-3000 Savage case, but the cartridge Winchester released is based on the 6mm Lee Navy case necked down to .224 inch. That is why the Swift is semi-rimmed while nearly every modern centerfire is rimless.
Standardization came slowly for the 22-250 Remington.
- The cartridge began as a wildcat on the .250-3000 Savage case necked down to .224 inch, credited to Wotkyns, J. E. Gebby, and J. Bushnell Smith, and known as the .22 Varminter.
- Browning chambered rifles for it in 1963, before any industry specification or factory ammunition existed.
- Remington adopted it in 1965, added its name, submitted it to SAAMI, and chambered the Model 700 and 40 XB for it, standardizing the wildcat after roughly 28 years.
Velocity and trajectory
Velocity belongs to the Swift, and the gap is narrower than its reputation suggests. At 55 grains the two are identical in factory form, with Hornady's Varmint Express rifle ammunition rated at 3,680 fps in both chamberings. Lighter bullets are where the Swift's larger case capacity has room to work, and the margin there runs to roughly 100 to 200 fps rather than the night and day gap people expect. A published 29 grain load at 4,665 fps is still widely cited as the fastest velocity for a commercial cartridge, and it is a 220 Swift.
Trajectory follows velocity, and at varmint ranges that gap buys a few inches of drop at 300 yards. It matters on a prairie dog and very little on a coyote.
Barrel life and throat wear
The Swift earned its barrel burner name in the 1930s, and the barrel steel of that era is often credited with much of the problem. After the war the Model 70 moved to an improved steel alloy and later a stainless barrel, changes widely credited with easing the throat erosion behind the complaints. The reputation outlasted the problem.
Loaded to similar velocities with similar bullets, barrel life on the two is closer than most comparisons admit. Throat erosion follows heat and velocity, so the way you load and the pace you shoot a string matter more than the headstamp. The 22-250 Remington is still easier to live with, because few shooters run it anywhere near the velocity the Swift was built to reach.
Recoil, accuracy, and shooting experience
Neither cartridge kicks much, so neither one builds a flinch. You can watch your own impacts through the scope, and plenty of factory rifles in either chambering group under an inch at 100 yards with a load they like.
Feeding is where the case design shows.
- A rimless 22-250 Remington case stacks cleanly in a box magazine.
- The 220 Swift is semi-rimmed, so a case rim can come to rest behind the rim of the round beneath it, which stops the bolt stripping that round forward. The fix is simple once you know about it: load each round so its rim sits ahead of the rim below.
Factory ammunition and rifle availability
On ammunition and rifles, the 22-250 Remington wins outright. Most major manufacturers load it, usually with 50 to 55 grain varmint rifle bullets, and it has been a mainstay chambering in bolt action rifles since the Model 700.
Fewer makers load the 220 Swift, and in fewer bullet weights, with Hornady among those that stayed with it. New rifles chambered for it are uncommon, so most Swift rifles in use are older guns or custom builds. That leaves the cartridge leaning on handloaders, which is how it kept its following for 90 years.
Reloading the 220 Swift and 22-250 Remington
Brass options and case life
Graf & Sons carries unprimed brass for both cartridges, with further options across the wider rifle brass range.
| Cartridge | Unprimed brass | What the case design means at the bench |
|---|---|---|
| 220 Swift | 220 Swift brass from Hornady, or Nosler 220 Swift brass | Semi-rimmed, but it headspaces on the shoulder like the 22-250 Remington. Measure your fired cases and set the sizing die against that measurement. |
| 22-250 Remington | 22-250 Remington brass from Hornady, or Norma 22-250 Remington brass | Rimless, and it headspaces on the shoulder like most modern bottleneck cases. |
Case life depends on how hard you load and how far you push the shoulder back when sizing. Both are high intensity cases, so set your die to bump the shoulder about 0.002 inch for a bolt gun rather than sizing to the die's stop. No other habit does more for case life.
Dies and bullet weights that work well
Full length die sets cover both. For accuracy work a bushing die controls neck tension, as the Redding Type S-Elite 220 Swift die set does for the Swift, and a micrometer seater such as the Forster 220 Swift seater die makes seating depth repeatable to the thousandth.
Bullet weight is the real constraint, and it comes down to twist rate.
- Factory 220 Swift barrels are commonly 1 in 14, with some at 1 in 12. Most 22-250 Remington rifles share those rates, though some current models ship with 1 in 8 to 1 in 10 barrels.
- Those rates stabilize bullets up to roughly 55 grains, and 1 in 12 will often handle 60 grains.
- The heavy, high ballistic coefficient 22 caliber bullets of the last decade, at 70 to 80 grains, need closer to 1 in 8 and will not stabilize in a 1 in 12 or 1 in 14 barrel.
Check your rifle's twist rate before you order. In a 1 in 14 barrel, 40 to 55 grain varmint bullets are where both cartridges do their best work.
220 Swift vs 22-250 Remington: which should you choose?
- Prairie dogs: 22-250 Remington. A dog town means long strings of shots on a hot day, and barrel heat is the limiting factor. The cooler-running cartridge with more plentiful factory loads is the one you will shoot more of.
- Coyotes: 22-250 Remington. Shots come at 100 to 300 yards, where both are flat enough and carry plenty of energy, so rifle choice and ammunition support decide it.
- Light bullets at distance: 220 Swift. The bigger case gets more out of a 40 grain bullet than the 22-250 Remington can, and few factory 22 centerfire cartridges match it. Feed it light, load it carefully, and it still earns the name.
Own a rifle in either chambering already? Keep it. Neither is enough better to justify a new one. Buying new, the 22-250 Remington is the easier gun to own, and the Swift is the one worth having if the loading bench is half the point.
Frequently asked questions
Is the 220 Swift faster than the 22-250 Remington?
Yes, though the margin depends on bullet weight. With 55 grain factory loads the two run close to the same velocity, around 3,680 fps. More case capacity gives the Swift room to work with lighter bullets, where it pushes 40 to 50 grain loads past 4,000 fps and runs roughly 100 to 200 fps ahead.
Does the 220 Swift really wear out barrels faster?
Less than its reputation says. The barrel burner name is often traced to 1930s barrel steel, and modern alloys and stainless barrels changed the picture. Heat and velocity are what erode a throat, so loading near maximum and firing long strings will wear any high intensity 22 centerfire, the 22-250 Remington included.
Can you shoot 22-250 Remington ammunition in a 220 Swift rifle?
No. The two are different cartridges with different case dimensions, and the 220 Swift is semi-rimmed while the 22-250 Remington is rimless. Cases will not headspace correctly against each other, and attempting it risks a dangerous failure. Fire only ammunition marked for the chambering stamped on your barrel.
Which cartridge is better for coyotes?
The 22-250 Remington, for most hunters. Coyote shots usually fall between 100 and 300 yards, where both cartridges shoot flat enough and hit hard enough. The 22-250 Remington is chambered in more rifles and loaded by more ammunition makers, which makes it the easier cartridge to own and feed.
Is the 220 Swift still in production?
Yes, in a limited way. Hornady and Nosler both make unprimed brass, and loaded varmint ammunition is still produced, so an existing rifle can be fed and handloaded without trouble. Finding a new factory rifle in the chambering is the harder part, since few makers catalog one.
