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For the last 10 days of my upland season, I shot pheasants with a new Browning Citori 825. Based on my experience with that gun, and on the three days I spent in Alberta warding off swarms of ducks and geese with the updated Franchi Affinity 3 earlier in the fall, 2025 feels like a good year for shotguns. Both of those new guns performed admirably, and several just-announced introductions, such as Fabarm’s side-by-side target gun, should intrigue die-hard shooters and hunters. There’s a little something for everyone in 2025's crop of new shotguns, even for the neglected deer-hunting slug shooter, who can choose among a trio of Mossberg pumps. Here's a rundown of the hottest offerings going into the new year.
Top New Shotguns for 2025
Browning Citori 825
Successor to the Citori 725, the new 825 changes little about the previous gun. That’s not a bad thing because the 725 was already excellent. The new model adds some modern restyling to the low-profile, lightweight frame of the 725. What you’ll really notice, though, is the improved Firelite 2 trigger, which is truly mechanical and breaks cleanly at around 3 ½-pounds. The gun has Browning’s soft Inflex pad and even the field model has a right-hand palm swell. The 825 lineup comprises a field model and several sporting and trap guns, all in 12-gauge only. Field guns are $3,146; sporting $3,679; and trap, $3,949.
Beretta 699 Performance
A new target gun from Beretta, the 688 is aimed at scholastic competitors, new shooters, and anyone who wants a reasonably priced, competition-ready O/U. It forgoes traditional walnut furniture for striking gray/black laminate. The 688 Performance comes with Beretta’s B-Fast adjustable comb and has a broader frame to add strength and bring the weight up to 8 ½ pounds. You choice of 28-, 30- and 32-inch barrels feature extended Optimachoke HP extended tubes. The 688 comes in both trap and sporting models and as a women’s “Vittoria” version with a specially designed stock. Black metal with orange highlights compliments the laminate stock and forend. MSRP is $3,499.
Related: Hottest New Rifles from the 2025 SHOT Show
Beretta DT 11 Pyramide
For 2025 Beretta is also offering a 300-gun limited edition of its high-end DT 11 target gun, specially engraved as the “Pyramide.” The gun is Beretta’s competition-proven O/U, fresh off dominating the Paris Olympics, with a special geometric, pyramidal engraving pattern on the action body that is good-looking and distinctive.
As with all of Beretta’s high-end guns, the DT 11 uses a proven cross-bolt locking system as the basis of a gun that will last hundreds of thousands of rounds. It has a clean, 3 ½-pound trigger and detachable trigger group in case you need to make a repair in the heat of competition. It has Beretta’s Steelium Plus barrels and Optima Choke tubes for reliable patterns, shot after shot. The guns come in trap, skeet, and sporting models for $13,250
Benelli Nova 3
Pump-gun fans have a new version of Benelli’s tough Nova to get excited about. The new Nova 3 features restyled lines while retaining the rugged one-piece polymer stock/receiver reinforced by an internal steel frame. The old Novas were very slick, thanks to their rotary bolt. The new Nova has the same smooth action and a shortened cycling stroke that will make follow-up shots even faster. The enlarged trigger guard makes the gun easier to handle with cold fingers. The gun comes in 3-inch 12-gauge with 26- or 28-inch barrels. MSRP is $529 in black and $629 in Max 7 or Bottomland.
Benelli SBE 20-gauge Compact and Left Hand Models
Benelli has expanded the SBE 3 line in several directions this year, adding A.I. barrels to select 12- and 20-gauge models and expanding the 28-gauge lineup, too. Best of all, in my biased, left-handed opinion, there is now a true, mirror-image LH SBE 3 in 20-gauge. The LH gun comes in black with a 28-inch barrel. There’s also a 20-gauge Compact model with a 24-inch barrel. While intended for smaller shooters, it will make a great turkey gun for any size hunter, and it should list right around $2,000. The LH model should sell for $1,949.
Weatherby Element II
Weatherby has given its Element inertia gun a makeover for ’25, dubbing it the Element II. The stock and receiver are racily restyled, and the guns have enlarged bolt handles, cut-away loading ports, and “slammer” buttons. The new Element also uses the Benelli Crio-choke system for improved patterning. Unlike other semi-autos that require tools and sometimes heat to remove the stock-mounted recoil spring, the Element II has a simple, hand-detachable nut that permits tool-free removal and cleaning of the spring. The Element II is available in 3-inch 12- and 20-gauge versions in black synthetic, synthetic and Cerakote, walnut, and camo, all with 28-inch barrels. The guns start at $669
Related: Hottest New Crossbows for 2025
Franchi Affinity 3
The Franchi Affinity 3 wasn’t broken, so Franchi didn’t fix it. Instead, they gave the gun a subtle re-styling and slimmed the grip and forend to make it feel better in hand. Part of the Affinity 3’s makeover includes a smaller bolt-closer button that looks better and works every bit as well as the old one, which looked like a poker chip and was easy to bump accidentally. The new stock also adjusts for length. Otherwise, the Affinity 3 is still the affordable inertia gun its many fans know and love. A recoil spring around the magazine tube, not in the stock, makes it a very easy gun to clean thoroughly. It’s light, it points well, and it comes in 3-inch 12-gauge and 20-gauge in black, walnut, and camo, starting at $1079
Mossberg M500 Slugsters
Mossberg offers a trio of Model 500 Slugsters this year in 12- and 20-gauge and in .410. The straight-wall deer rifle trend is fine, but a slug fired out of a rifled 12- or 20-gauge barrel is more than accurate enough to bring home the venison, too, and at a very affordable price. The 12 and 20 have 1-in-36-inch-twist barrels, which tend to work best with slower, fullbore slugs. The .410 is a cylinder bore. All three guns have drilled and tapped receivers, 24-inch barrels with iron sights, and synthetic stocks. They sell for just $518.
Tristar Raptor II
Tristar’s Turkish-made Raptor gas-operated semi-auto receives the enlarged-controls treatment and becomes the Raptor II for 2025. With a bigger bolt handle and a slammer button, the gun is now easier to load and unload with cold, wet hands, or with gloves on. It comes in 3-inch 12-gauge and 3-inch 20-gauge, in black synthetic, walnut and blue, and camo synthetic models. All the 12s have 28-inch barrels. The synthetic 20 has a 26-inch barrel, and the other two have 28-inch tubes. Despite the improvements, the Raptor II still starts at $489.
Stoeger 3000 and 3020 Turkey
Stoeger's 3000 3-inch 12-gauge inertia gun and its scaled-down 20-gauge sidekick, the 3020, get the full turkey treatment for 25. The guns have 22-inch barrels with extended, X-Full turkey chokes. Along with bright, Hi-Viz beads, both guns are optic-ready. The 12-gauge has a receiver cut for RMR or Burris sights, while the 20 sports a Picatinny rail. Both guns wear Mossy Oak Bottomland and come with paracord slings. MSRP is $699.
Fabarm Infinite RS Sporting Side-By-Side
Fabarm's new Infinite RS Sporting is a true side-by-side target model, with all the features of a competition gun. It’s a cheat code for side-by-side events and likely a gun that can match up well against most O/Us, too. The gun has 32-inch barrels, a high, interchangeable rib, single selective trigger, beavertail forend, adjustable comb, and a heft of a bit over 8 pounds. It retails for $5,495.
Fabarm Autumn Elite
Fabarm’s Autumn side-by-side now comes in a higher grade to compliment the handsome base model. Like the original, the new Elite comes in 20-gauge only, with 28-inch barrels and a choice of an English straight-grip or pistol-grip stock. The guns have 3-inch chambers and choke tubes to handle all types of shot, and they weigh between 6 ¼- to 6 ½-pounds. The Elite has upgraded, oil-finished walnut and a coin-steel receiver with gold-inlaid engraving. Left-handed stocks and double triggers are both available as options. The gun lists for $5,995.
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