Honest Review: Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 2.0

This might just be one of the top-selling pistols of 2024, and it’s only just hitting stores now!

Even though the original Smith & Wesson Bodyguard was popular, it seems everyone who owned one had a love-hate relationship with it, including myself. On one side you had to love a pistol that was micro size, lightweight and super thin that you could conceal it in your tighty-whities, Breaking Bad style. On the other side was the ergonomics and trigger pull. The original BG 380 was so small that it was hard to get a full grip on it … and the trigger was nothing to brag about. Low-left shooting was practically the norm with the first Bodyguard, due to the long, heavy trigger pull. To be sure, the good outweighed the bad, and that’s what made the BG .380 one of the most popular choices when it came to the micro pistol category. Enter the Bodyguard 2.0.

As popular as the original Bodyguard is, Smith & Wesson could have gone the easy route, adding some bling here and some makeup there, and come up with a great second-generation Bodyguard. Instead, S&W basically threw out everything and started over, the only thing in common being the name “Bodyguard.”

Even though the 2.0 looks like a larger pistol, the measurements are basically the same. Length and height of the original is 5.25” x 4.1”, vs. the 2.0 , which is 5.5” x 4”.

But even though the pistols are essentially the same size, the capacities are wildly different. The 2.0 Bodyguard gives you four more rounds with the flush-fitting magazines. You would think that having 10-plus rounds of .380 ACP would mean that the 2.0 turns into a fat hog width-wise, but nope! The difference between the widths when carrying is imperceptible, with the BG 380 being .75” wide vs .88 wide of the 2.0. The magic comes in with modern, stronger polymer blends that allow thinner sidewalls for the pistol frames. These thinner sidewalls allow S&W to use a staggered magazine, which gives you the extra capacity.

Capacity is great, but does not mean anything if the shooter has trouble hitting the intended target. The original BG 380 used an internal hammer-fired trigger mechanism. This meant that you needed a long, heavier trigger pull to cock the hammer and then release it—similar to a revolver. For the 2.0, S&W went to a striker-fired mechanism, similar to the Shield or M&P series pistols. You end up with pistols that have mid-4-lb. trigger pulls that are short and repeatable. If you have ever shot a Shield or other M&P series polymer pistols you will be right at home with the 2.0.

It might be weird for me to say that disassembly is my favorite thing about the bodyguard 2.0, but it is. Hear me out: The harder a pistol is to field-strip, the less likely someone is to keep up with cleaning. The original BG 380s had a small takedown lever that you had to use your fingernail or a tool to pry out of the frame to release the slide. I have had several customers in the gunstore that completely lost the separate takedown lever. The 2.0 mimics the takedown of S&W’s Shield pistols: Make empty, Lock the slide back, Rotate the lever to 6’o clock, Release the slide, Pull the trigger, Slide comes off. No more chipped fingernails, tools, or lost disassembly levers.

The frame of the Bodyguard 2.0 looks similar to the styling of S&W’s other 2.0 M&P pistols. The 2.0 features two texture zones on the front and back of the frame that helps lock your hand in place. The texture zones are good enough that S&W chose to not include the finger groove hump of the original. I like the flat pistol front grip, since shooting weak hand my hand just sits differently than strong hand.

Remember when I said that the height of the 1.0 and 2.0 are practically the same? Well, on the 1.0, I have trouble gripping the pistol with two fingers before the grip runs out. With the 2.0 Bodyguard, I can fit just about all three fingers with the flush mag plate.

So what gives? The magic comes in the form of the reworked trigger guard. On 1.0 the trigger guard basically goes straight back into the slide. With the 2.0, S&W provided a substantial undercut allowing room for the extra finger. This is also why the 2.0 looks bigger than its forebears: The extra undercut makes the grip look longer and more substantial. This is also true at the rear, when you compare the undercut of both generations the 2.0 inherited all of the curves on the backside (if you know what I mean). The benefit is a nice beavertail that protects your hand web from being bitten by the slide while shooting. The ergonomics of the 2.0 are a vast, vast improvement.

Moving on to the slide … Smith & Wesson might have gone obscene with all of the slide cuts, especially for a pistol this size. The 2.0 has more scallops than a Red Lobster menu. Where the 1.0 had a small section of slide grip cuts, S&W overcompensated by making the slide one giant gripping area with 15 fancy scallop cuts.

If you’ve ever wondered where you should grasp a slide to manipulate it, S&W answered YES, grip me anywhere you want. S&W is known for its premium build quality, and the Bodyguard 2.0 is no different. Not only are the slide and barrel crafted of stainless steel, but then S&W gives the metal an attractive matte black Armornite finish that makes it practically rust-proof! For sights S&W includes a high-visibility tritium night sight front, paired with a nice U-shaped rear notch.

I predict the S&W Bodyguard 2.0 will end up being one of the top-selling CCW pistols for the year. The engineers at S&W basically did everything right and in all honesty, I don’t have any real complaints. S&W basically turned the volume on Micro pistols up to 11 … which just so happens to be the capacity of the 2.0 with the flush magazine. The 2.0 feels better and shoots better with better build quality then any micro pistol I can think of off the top of my head. If you are looking for a micro pistol for back up or deep concealed carry start asking your dealer now, these will be a hot commodity for a minute. Find yours here!

—James Nicholas “the XDMAN,” Mr. UnPewFessional Himself!