Mossberg 940 vs Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol: Which Is Better?

It is close: the Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol is a touch lighter, recoiled slightly less and ran the fastest double tap in our testing, while the Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical has the biggest controls and a factory optics cut that sits a red dot low. Our reviewer’s personal pick was the 940, but the A300 is the better buy if you want ghost rings and grippy texture out of the box. The Savage Renegauge Security recoiled the least and never malfunctioned, but its long stock held it back.

Mossberg 940 vs Beretta A300 vs Savage Renegauge at a Glance

	Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical	Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol	Savage Renegauge Security
Barrel	18.5 in	19.1 in	18.5 in
Overall length	37.5 in	38 in	40 in
Weight	7.5 lb	7.1 lb	7 lb
Length of pull	12.5 to 14.25 in	13 in	14.25 to 15.07 in
Capacity	7	7	6
Sights and optics	Fiber optic bead, RMSc optics cut	Ghost rings, short Picatinny section	Ghost rings, drilled and tapped
Gas system	Gas operated	B-Link	D.R.I.V. with rotating bolt
Recoil (least to most)	3rd	2nd	1st
Best double tap	0.88 s	0.85 s	0.90 s
Reliability notes	Would not extract one brand of unfired buckshot	Two failures to fire on port reloads	No issues
MSRP (2026)	Discontinued; current 940 Pro Tactical SPX $1,190	$1,199	$1,339

Mossberg 940 vs Beretta A300: Head-to-Head Verdict

• Controls: Mossberg 940. Biggest controls, easier port reloads and malfunction clearances.
• Red dot mounting: Mossberg 940. Factory RMSc cut co-witnesses with the bead.
• Iron sights: Beretta A300. Ghost rings beat a bead for precision.
• Recoil: Beretta A300, by a hair.
• Speed: Beretta A300, 0.85 second best double tap to the 940’s 0.88.
• Reliability: Call it even. Each had one kind of hiccup in our testing.
• Price: Even. $1,190 for the 940 Pro Tactical SPX and $1,199 for the A300 Ultima Patrol (2026 MSRP).
• Our reviewer’s pick: Mossberg 940.

For more choices, see our best home defense shotguns guide.

The Three Shotguns

All three are modern, gas-operated semi-auto shotguns that feed from tube magazines. Beretta is an Italian company, but the A300 series is made in America, so you could call this an American shotgun shootout.

Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical

The 940 Pro Tactical is an evolution of Mossberg’s 930. Mossberg worked with Jerry Miculek on the 940 series to improve reliability, and Mossberg says it is designed to run 1,500 rounds between cleanings. It has a heavier-walled barrel than the other two guns, which makes it the heaviest here and a bit front-heavy. For a deeper look at a 940 variant, see our Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical SPX review.

Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol

The A300 Ultima Patrol was Beretta’s effort to build a serious tactical shotgun for less than $1,000 when we tested it in 2025. It is now $1,199 MSRP (2026). It shares the fast-cycling, recoil-reducing B-Link gas system with the more expensive 1301 but skips the 1301’s rotating bolt and dual op rods. Our first review is meet the Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol.

Savage Renegauge Security

The Renegauge started as a field gun and evolved into the Security model. Its self-regulating D.R.I.V. gas system vents excess gas out the front, which reduces recoil, and it pairs that system with a rotating bolt. See our Savage Renegauge full review for the field version.

Ergonomics

All three use spacer systems to adjust length of pull, with stocks influenced by Magpul’s SGA. The 940 and A300 start short and adjust to a little over 14 inches. The Renegauge starts at 14.25 inches and goes to 15.07. Our reviewer is six feet five inches tall and still found 14.25 inches too long for modern, squared-up tactical shooting.

All three have oversized controls, charging handles, bolt releases and safeties, plus enlarged loading and ejection ports. The Mossberg has the largest controls, which made port reloads and malfunction clearances slightly easier. The A300 has aggressively textured grip and forend panels that lock the gun in your hands for push-pull recoil control, even with sweaty hands.

Sights and Optics

The 940 has a simple fiber optic bead, so it lags in iron sights. It leads in red dots. The receiver is milled for RMSc footprint optics, which sit low enough to co-witness with the bead, and it is also drilled and tapped for a rail.

The A300 and Renegauge use ghost ring sights, which are slower than a bead but more precise, a good match for tight-patterning buckshot like Federal Flitecontrol. The A300 has a short section of Picatinny rail for an optic, and aftermarket mounts can set a dot lower. The Renegauge is drilled and tapped, but you have to buy the rail separately.

Recoil and Speed

The Renegauge had the least recoil, thanks to the D.R.I.V. system venting gas forward. The A300 came in a close second, and the 940 had a little more recoil, though its front-heavy barrel reduced muzzle rise.

After a warm-up, our reviewer could put two rounds on target in under a second with all three. His best double tap times were 0.85 second with the A300, 0.88 with the 940 and 0.90 with the Renegauge. The A300 was consistently a hair faster. The Renegauge’s long stock made it hard to mount from low ready and to square up for push-pull, which likely cost it time despite the light recoil.

Reliability

All three proved reliable, with a few notes from our testing.

• Mossberg 940: with Monarch buckshot, an unfired shell would not come out of the chamber without firing it or using a cleaning rod. No other load did this, and fired cases ejected normally.
• Beretta A300: two failures to fire, both during port reloads. The bolt apparently did not fully go into battery, since there was no primer strike.
• Savage Renegauge: zero problems. It even cycled light reduced-recoil trap loads, and the rotating bolt gave very positive ejection.

Which Tactical Shotgun Should You Buy?

Buy the Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical if you want the best controls and a low, factory optics cut. It was our reviewer’s personal favorite.

Buy the Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol if you want the lighter recoiling of the two similarly priced guns, plus ghost rings and grippy texture. It is $1,199 MSRP (2026). It was the fastest gun in our split testing.

Buy the Savage Renegauge Security if you want the softest shooting and most reliable gun of the three and you are tall enough, or willing to modify the stock, to make its length of pull work. At $1,339 MSRP (2026), it costs about $140 more than the A300 Ultima Patrol.

Prices change, so check current listings. For more options, see our best semi-auto tactical shotguns, best Mossberg shotguns, best Beretta shotguns and best mag-fed shotguns guides.

Mossberg 940 vs Beretta A300 FAQ

Is the Mossberg 940 or Beretta A300 better?

Both are excellent. The 940 has bigger controls and a low factory optics cut. The A300 recoils slightly less, has ghost rings and better texture, and was a bit faster in our double tap testing.

Which tactical shotgun has the least recoil?

The Savage Renegauge Security, thanks to its D.R.I.V. gas system. The A300 was a close second.

How much do the 940 Pro Tactical and A300 Ultima Patrol cost?

Both sold for about $1,000 when we tested them in 2025. Today the A300 Ultima Patrol is $1,199 MSRP (2026). Mossberg has discontinued the 940 Pro Tactical we tested (last known price $1,225 MSRP, from a 2026 cached listing), and the current 940 Pro Tactical SPX is $1,190 MSRP (2026). The Renegauge Security is $1,339 MSRP (2026).

Can you mount a red dot on the Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical?

Yes. The receiver is cut for RMSc footprint optics, which sit low enough to co-witness with the bead, and it is also drilled and tapped for a rail.

How many rounds do these shotguns hold?

The 940 Pro Tactical and A300 Ultima Patrol hold 7 rounds in the tube. The Renegauge Security holds 6.

Did any of the shotguns malfunction?

The Renegauge had no issues. The A300 had two failures to fire during port reloads, and the 940 would not extract unfired Monarch buckshot.