Which and why?

I'm leaning towards S&W M&P 22 Compact because of the safety.  Like most pistols with safeties.  Down is fire and up is safe.  

The Ruger safety is backwards.  Up is fire and down is safe.

I am partial to the sw 22c. Its hungry and eats everything.

Yup

This, I've had no issues with mine either. Also correct on the safety issue.

I have the SR22 and it shoots great suppressed.

Funny, I just went to the LGS today to look at a S&W22c. Wanted to compare it to the M&P22 full size. The sales dude tried to talk me into the SR22 but I was not impressed with it at all and yes, that backwards safety is one of the reasons why.

That M&P22c is calling my name and after today's field trip, I'm sure there will be one in my safe soon. Nothing about not to like... Small and light weight enough for kids/woman/backpacking, etc. but big enough that someone like me with big hands can get a full and comfortable grip. Decent trigger with a very usable reset. Threaded barrel standard (but it does require an adapter). I;ve read a lot of reviews in this gun and have yet to find anybody who had issues with one? Everybody seems to say they eat anything and ask for more. That in itself is pretty amazing for a .22, especially one that was just recently released. These days it seems like most guns are released in beta form.

If I had to nit pick it I'd say I wish it were actually a tad bit heavier. I'd prefer it not to have a mag disconnect or internal lock. I also wish it took 12rd mags like the full size version and wish it fit in one of the standard M&P holsters but those are all very minor grips. Overall I think its a real winner!

Love my SR-22, but I guess I just use the safety as a decocker. The damn thing just runs, I've had mutiple range trips where I put an entire bulk pack through as fast as I can load mags. Its great suppressed also.

I have the M&P 22c and my BIL has the SR-22. Both are good guns. As others have mentioned I like the safety-off= down, as well as the size of the safety on the 22c vs the SR-22. I seem to be able to pick up the sights on the MP22c faster, but that is probably a presonal thing. Additionally I like the lighter first round trigger pull on the MP22 vs the 22c (stacking double action first shot).  
 We have had more ammo preference problems with the SR-22, as they were both bought the same weekend this issue may iron itself out eventualy (but then the MP22c has never had a problem).


The M&P 22c is great suppresed too...if that matters to you.

I own both.     My M&P 22 is much newer however.   My last time out I found it did not like the bulk Winchester I was shooting.   The SR-22, so far, has not found any ammo is doesn't like.    I will attempt the M&P 22 more.   I will say with my experience the SR-22 is a nice little .22 and so far for me eats everything I feed it.   I do not use Thunderbolt though!  lol

Any reason for choosing an M&P22c over the full-size M&P22?

That's a good question.   Not sure I've heard of too many complaints about the full size model.   But................

The full size is made by Walther for S&W.   The compact is US made by S&W.

I think that if you are looking for a close trainer for your M&P center fire handgun then the full size is probably the way to go. Additionally the 12rd capacity will be a plus for many to go with the full size.
 That said I prefer the materials/construction of the compact and think that in the long run it will last longer.  I am also using mine with my little ones, so I went with the compact.
YMMV

That's the best way to operate the SR22; use the decker/safety as a decocker only.

Decock and immediately return the decocker/safety to the "fire" position and safely run the pistol like any DA/SA pistol.

My wife picked up a Talo Edition SR22  Lady Lilac for herself yesterday and ran 150 rounds of Golden Bullets through it earlier this afternoon without a stoppage or malfunction.

She was enjoying the little pistol so much that I actually had  to drag her from the range back to the car.

Great little pistol, which surprised me because I don't usually like little pistols like that.

Reliable so far, and very accurate for what it is.

Apparently S&W is now going to sell them with the barrel adapter already included. Not sure if there's going to be much of a price increase, seeing as aftermarket adapters usually cost $20-40 anyway.

We went with the M&P22 (full size) mostly because with the SR22 my pinky finger landed right on the gap between the base of the grip and the magazine's base.

It wasn't a pinch point, but it wasn't comfortable either..........we tried a few Rugers at the store and they all had that same gap.

Like others have said, it's hard to go wrong between these 2 choices  

I had a SR22.  Kept the M&P 22.  More so because it's a full size trainer and I have large hands.  The SR22 worked like clockwork, though, mine wasn't ammo fussy at all.  Just a little small for my grip.  Really bought it for the wife to get into, but she prefers the cowboy revolver Single-Six.  Preferred the 3 dot sight picture of the Ruger SR22 over the M&P 22, keep wanting to switch the M&P's to a traditional 3 dot like the full-size centerfire but haven't gotten around to it.  Really depends what your reason behind purchasing a semi-auto 22.  Both are good trainers/plinkers.

Anyone able to tell a difference between the MP22 COMPACT and SR22 shot suppressed?

I thought the SR22 was just a BIT too loud suppressed with my SPARROW compared to other .22s that are similar to it (I don't know why).  
The P22, new Umarex PPK and an Umarex 1911 were ALL noticeably quieter than my SR22 (which had an upgraded steel take-down latch, and was 100% reliable).

I prefer the m&p22c because of the way it feels and the safety is "normal". Neither are ammo sensitive and run like tops and they are both accurate.

I had looked at the SR22, but couldn't past the weird safety and the price bump for the threaded model.

I've since become a M&P22 Compact fanboi.  I have two now, both at stupid-cheap prices from PSA.

I bought my original Compact back in Sep '14, and it's been 100%, both suppressed and unsuppressed.  

A few weeks ago, PSA put the suppressor-ready Compact on sale at $269, and I had to have another one.  So far, that's been 100%, as well.

The weapons look good with a can, too.





My only complaint is the lack of available fiber-optic front sights.  I'm waiting for Dawson to make a sight set for this gun so I can get rid of the three-dot factory set.  But that's just a personal preference.

Had both, could not stand the safety on the Ruger.  Love the M&P.

Dawson told me if I sent my slide in they would make me a set. They said they needed something to pattern it from then they could start production.

Do you have contact info for who you spoke with?  Now that I have two 22 Compacts, I would gladly send in a slide for them to work from.  Small price to pay to get them to make sights.

curious if it was only the safety on the Ruger.  If they both had the same safety which would you prefer?

Not R3, but the issue is that with the Ruger the safety moves up to disengage the safety (see the picture of the purple framed SR-22) where the safety on the M&P is a sweep down motion. Although I would call both "thumb safety's" the M&P is more pronounced than the Ruger.
  For those that have experience with 1911's, hi-powers, and a whole host of others handguns (and many rifles) the direction of the safety disengagement, its position on the frame, and the amount of exposed area make the M&P a better setup. YMMV.

I was recently in the market for a new .22 pistol and wanted something threaded. I looked at everything out there and specifically compared the SR-22 to the M&P .22 compact. Turned out to be a no brainier as there was absolutely nothing I liked about the SR-22. I was going to get the M&P .22 compact (and may still get one) but for now, I got a 22/45 Lite instead. I've owned a number of Ruger .22's and overall I like them but can't find anything to like about the SR-22. Just my $.02

This begs the question:

What do you dislike about the SR-22?

Not a fan boy but have a friend who loves his.  I've shot it numerous times and I liked it.  Ran like a top.  Safety is actually a benefit to me b/c I'd never use a .22 as a defensive weapon and it makes it a conscientious decision to fire: kind of what a safety is suppose to be.

I have the SR22. I like it a lot. It is very accurate out of the box. Almost never have any ammo it wont shoot, even some of the dirty stuff I had. Easy to clean. Well balanced.
My only trouble is I will shoot so much, I spend too much time reloading the magazines. I bought a few more mags, but you can have so much fun with this gun you wont want to stop
shooting it.  No problem with the safety / decock control. It has a bright red background so you can tell when the safety is on or off.

Good luck. Just buy them both, and double your fun!

I prefer the SR22 (had the full M&P22 before). I just neglect the safety, treating the pistol just like all other non-safety level pistols (Glock, etc...).  It's very reliable and accurate.

Yg

Which one has the closest trigger to a Glock?

M&P feels more similar to a standard striker fire trigger than the SR22 IMO

Have the S&W, and its a fun toy.  Like most have said, eats anything and highly reliable.  I'd be hard pressed to recommend anything else.

I've had both.  Well, I've had 2 SR22s and 1 MP22 compact.
When suppressed, the MP22 has a deeper tone with the Sparrow, and I slightly prefer it (perhaps because it had an EWK-Sparrow-specific adapter that incorporates the o-ring).

However, I MUCH prefer the ergonomics of the SR22 (and the single-action trigger feels better to me).  The MP22 Compact's grip is too long front-to-back (much like their Shield, which is one of the best values for what it is)...the MP22C just felt weird compared to the Ruger (which I like with either grip on it--big or small).

I think reliability and build-quality are on par...two of the least picky 22LR compact pistols available.    
I don't like that the MP22C uses the barrel itself to act as a front rail kinda...it allows steel to rub aluminum. I spent the extra money and got the EWK "Recoil Guide Spring Centering Bushing".
I don't like the SR22's "up"-safety, BUT I never use the safety, so it wasn't a big deal.
I don't like that both have mag-safeties, but both are removable without much effort.
My MP22C didn't come with a thread adapter, but I *think* they now do come standard (I would have bought the sparrow-model anyway).
Aftermarket is pretty good for both, BUT I wish someone made a Sparrow-Adapter for the OEM Ruger barrel (not worth spending the money to replace the whole barrel with Twin Tech Tactical stuff.
I like the aftermarket followers that allow more rounds, and the MP22C can get 14+1, whereas the SR22 only gets 13+1 (so that's basically a tie).

The SR22 DOES have double-strike capability, which is nice--but in my life of shooting 22LR, I can only think of maybe one or two times when a second strike ignited a round (and someone said that this was because some ammo has the ignition going around like 98% of the rim, but not all of it).  Both guns shoot various CCI perfectly, which is my main ammo/brand.

It really comes down to personal preference.

Could go this route.....


made by Walther, NOT Umarex like the p22

Generally, if the safety is in line with the barrel, the firearm is HOT!

Generally, if the safety is in line with the barrel, the firearm is HOT!