Whew! That's a tough question that has been asked and answered 20 gazillion times, I'm sure, but to tell the truth, there is no real answer, only advice and suggestions. Determine a price range and then research places like Gallery of Guns and Budsgunshop.com and get some weapon ideas in your price range. My personal advice is to consider a 9mm first. With today's +P loads, the 9mm is a deadly capable round, and is a controllable round when fired in distress from a handgun. Start with perhaps a Glock, S&W MP9, or the Beretta 92. You may want to begin with a revolver, such as a Ruger LCR in .357. The advantage of a revolver is it is more forgiving to someone new to firearms in a stressful situation. I could write forever on this, but I think you catch my drift ... I hope this has been helpful. Give me your budget and handgun experience & I lay out some good weapons for you to research.

Agreed. Home protection typically is a simple use weapon with as few movements as possible. This brings in a safety device like a bedside safe or such. Research the caliber, some penetrate more than others depending on your walls. Sheet rock.....please hit the target or use the judge by Taurus. Wood, hit em with a 9mm maybe, thickness depending....use your wall mats as a penetration test. Steel.....use a 44 mag with a hand grenade and bomb! You get the point, know your home, but for qualifying 9mm. Afterwards....no matter what caliber you have, if you can't place the shot....don't use it, please.

Hi and welcome....JJ

Welcome to the forum! I love my Ruger SP101 .357 magnum snubby revolver, especially when I shoot .38 special rounds in it! Very comfortable to shoot, recoil isn't bad at all and a Hogue Monogrip makes it even more comfortable to handle. Although I really love it....it's not the lightest gun in the world, even with it being fairly small. I have shot the Ruger LCP .380 and it's very nice as well. The LCP was extremely easy to conceal and was extremely lightweight and accurate. The only other "light" gun I've shot is a S&W airweight .38 special, but the recoil was a little stout and I wasn't very accurate with it at distances greater than 5-6 yards...or maybe I'm just a bad shot? Haha!

Visit your local gun range or store to see if they can let you rent some of these before you buy them. Guns are like tattoos...you get one...you'll want another...and another!

Welcome, let us know what you end up with!

Thanks everyone. I will keep you posted on my process and progress as get my training in order and sample multiple guns.