Using the chart we see that all sniper rifles do 70 damage and have a damage multiplier of 1.0, 1.1 or 1.5. For snipers the golden rule is the one shot kill, anything less and you might as well be using an assault rifle. So what multipliers do we need to meet this golden rule?

A 1.0 multiplier will never one shot kill an enemy unless he was previously afflicted damage. A 1.1 multiplier will one shot the enemy if you are using the Stopping Power Perk. Finally, a 1.5 multiplier will one shot the enemy without the use of Stopping Power but if Stopping Power it is equipped it will one shot an enemy equipped with Juggernaut.

These numbers might be a tad confusing now, but they will be become more clear and useful as we review the weapons. Without further ado here our analysis and review of all the Sniper Rifles, scroll to the bottom of the page for the short version.

M21 – The hands down best sniper rifle for hardcore matches because players start with 30 health instead of 100 health. The M21 does 70 damage with relatively poor damage multipliers, but for hardcore it is still easily enough to guarantee one shot kills no matter what part of the target you hit. The higher damage values of the other weapons just aren’t needed. It also has an incredibly low recoil which means you can spam 4-5 shots in the target area with reasonable accuracy.

R700 – The high scope sway make the it very difficult to control and means it takes more time to hold your breath and set up a hot. For that reason and factors stated above it is worse than the M40A3 except in rare cases involving Juggernaut in Call of Duty.

Dragunov – The damage multipliers of the Dragunov means it is usually outclassed by the other sniper rifles, except when using non-Stopping Power Perks. This is because adding Stopping Power provides virtually no benefit to the Dragunov. With our without Stopping Power it can only one shot to the Head, Neck and Torso. This opens up options for Perk 2, like adding Overkill and the P90 to create a hybrid sniper/rush class. This versatility gives the Dragunov some small niche capabilities in Call of Duty 4.

M40A3 – The best bolt action sniper rifle when using the Stopping Power perk. With Stopping Power the M40A3 will one shot kill on all parts of the body except for the exterior limbs. The closest weapon to compare it to is the R700. The advantages of the M40A3 over the R700 are it’s higher bullet capacity and it’s much lower scope sway. The one thing the R700 has going for it is it’s higher damage multiplier for Stomach shots. This provides little practical advantage except for making it slightly easier to one shot enemies with Juggernaut.

Barrett .50 Cal – The best semi-automatic Sniper Rifle when using Stopping Power. Whether or not the Barrett is better than the M40A3 is a matter of opinion, but the weapons are very similar. The Barrett is slightly at one single shot kills to Juggernaut enemies while the M40A3 has advantages when it comes it recoil. Personally I prefer the Barrett because of it’s strength in close quarters. In a tight spot you can quickly spam a full magazine at close range and probably get a kill.

The bottom line: The M21 is best for hardcore matches, the M40A3 and Barrett for normal matches and the Dragunov has some niche hybrid class abilities.