Plate carriers are more popular than ever. This makes it difficult to find the best budget plate carriers, under $300. After all, two carriers may be exact copies of each other, but one is held together using string and sticks of gum. The purpose of this article is to highlight some great budget carriers, suitable for law enforcement or tactical use. We’ll also review a few quality options for accessories and armor. Keep reading for more.
I’ve worn quite a lot of vests and plate carriers in my career, and I’ve seen the good, bad, and the ugly. As you’ll see in this article, I’ve capped all the vests at $300. Remember, this is just the price of the carrier. That doesn’t include armor, or pouches.
My rule of thumb for plate carriers, and life saving gear in general, is that it must be reliable first. For plate carriers, that means it has to correctly hold the armor in place for the duration I expect to wear it. All the carriers on this list should be durable for any reasonable use.
However, the more expensive options will be more comfortable to wear for extended periods. Here’s a list of the best budget plate carriers we will be discussing, from cheapest to most expensive.
7 Best Budget Plate Carriers Under $300
- Condor Defender Plate Carrier
- High Speed Gear Core Plate Carrier
- Ferro Concepts The Slickster Low Profile Plate Carrier
- Velocity Systems Law Enforcement Plate Carrier
- Velocity Systems Lightweight Plate Carrier
- Crye Precision Jumpable Plate Carrier
- Agilite K-Zero Plate Carrier
The lowest priced plate carrier starts right above $100. Most of these budget options cost around $150, with the most expensive options just under the budget cap. I will review some of the key features for each plate carrier in its own section.
Most, if not all of these plate carriers, come with various options like colors, and different packaging choices. I encourage you to follow the links to the carriers that seem most interesting to you, to see how you can customize it for your use.
In the next section I will review some armor options, and accessories you can use to make your plate carrier / bullet proof vest fit your needs. Let’s get to the next section.
Best Budget Plate Carriers: Armor and Accessories
We must remember the primary job of a tactical plate carrier is to carry the armor that will actually save your life. It’s secondary job is to help you look cool on Instagram. For users who are looking to purchase an armor and plate carrier package, for casual use, you don’t have to spend an arm and a leg. For law enforcement, and military personnel, I would recommend purchasing the best your budget will allow.
Level IIIA Soft Armor
There are two types of armor you need to consider. If you only need armor to stop handgun threats, then you can purchase level IIIA soft armor. This is the type of armor that police officers routinely wear. It has the benefit of being much lighter, and more comfortable than rifle plates.
This is an interesting IIIA option from Acelink. It’s NIJ rated for most common pistol threats, and it’s listed as stab proof armor. Most readers would be shocked to discover that just because armor stops a bullet, doesn’t mean it can stop a knife. This armor insert comes in a 1.1 pounds per panel, and will run $270 for both front and back panels in total. Next we’ll cover some rifle rated plates.
Rifle Rated Plates
Most folks new to body armor think that more is always better. If you read my article about the dangers of adding weight, even in the form of body armor, you would know that isn’t true. You should wear the lightest armor you can, provided that it stops the most likely threats you will face.
Unfortunately the lightest weight plates are also the most expensive. Luckily, those same manufacturing processes have become more common. Now there are many great options that would have costs thousands a few years ago.
I recommend looking for NIJ rated plates that will stop M855 ammunition. This is military 5.56mm green tip steel core ammunition. While it’s not “armor piercing” it is readily available on the market, and can penetrate many lower level plates.
These level IV ballistic plates look like a great option from Grey Ghost. Normally I think level 4 plates are overkill, as they’re NIJ rated to stop anything up to armor piercing 30-06 ammo. However, these ceramic plates are only $193 per plate, and they weigh 7.3 pounds per. They’re only .83 inches thick, which is very reasonable.
You can certainly find plates in the 3 pound range, but you’ll be paying at least double the price per plate. If you plan on wearing them all day, that might be a good option. Otherwise you’ll find that those Grey Ghost plates are a screaming deal, especially for the highest level of ballistic protection. In the next section we’ll review some great accessories for your plate carrier.
Plate Carrier Pouches, Placards, and More
There are a lot of good tactical gear companies out there, and I’ve used many different pouches, and placards over the years. I will tell you the best gear I’ve used is Spiritus Systems. I currently run their lunch box pouch, and their elastic placard on my tactical vest.
They’ve both performed flawlessly for years, and they aren’t super expensive. Check out their products for your plate carrier or bulletproof vest. I’m sure you’ll like them. Now let’s get to the list of the 7 best budget plate carriers.
The 7 Best Budget Plate Carriers
It’s important to note that I will be listing the options and prices of these plate carriers as of this writing. Some of them are currently on sale, and will likely go up in price. Where as others could come down if you time your purchase correctly.
Keep in mind your intended purpose. If you just want it as a back up, or for unlikely emergencies, then you don’t need to spend big bucks. If this is something you will be wearing for hours on end, I would recommend purchasing the best you can afford.
Don’t forget, you still need to purchase things like mag pouches, and other accessories! Let’s get to the first offering on our list of the 7 best budget plate carriers. Before we do that, don’t forget to join the email list.
The Condor Defender Plate Carrier
The Condor Defender Plate Carrier is an excellent choice for casual users. It features a traditional build, with a full MOLLE cummerbund. It has interior pockets for soft armor, and rifle plates. If you really want to go crazy, it can accept side plates in the cummerbund as well.
Even typing that gives me flashbacks to my Marine Corps plate carrier, where we had to run side plates. I do not recommend it, unless you love carrying a 60 pound plate carrier.
Condor Defender Plate Carrier
The Defender also features a lot of mesh padding on the interior which can help sweat evaporate when wearing it in hot weather. Most importantly, the cummerbund and shoulder straps are fully adjustable so you can position the armor in the right location.
Currently the Defender runs $105. With armor you’d be looking at a total price range between $300-$500, depending on which armor you picked. Next on our list of the best budget plate carriers, we’ll talk about a very cool minimalist carrier.
High Speed Gear Core Plate Carrier
The High Speed Gear Core Plate Carrier is an interesting minimalist option. It features laser cut MOLLE front and rear plate bags, as well as a loop velcro field for patches. Instead of a traditional adjustable cummerbund, it has a strap that will keep the plate carrier in place during use, provided you actually tighten it down!
High Speed Gear Core Plate Carrier
One of the nicest features is the soft nylon on the shoulder pads. Often times cheaper plate carriers have padding but they leave very coarse Cordura on the edges of the shoulder straps. This will rub your neck raw in a matter of hours. That doesn’t seem to be an issue here.
This plate carrier doesn’t accommodate any side plates or armor. It would be more suitable for occasional use. I don’t think this was intended to be worn all day, as some of the other options on the list were.
You can pick this plate carrier up for $136, in several different colors. Next we’ll talk about one of my favorite options on this list of best budget plate carriers.
Ferro Concepts Slickster Plate Carrier
The Ferro Concepts The Slickster Low Profile Plate Carrier is one of the best options on this list. As the name implies, it isn’t covered in MOLLE webbing, as it was designed to work with various placards from Ferro Concepts, or other companies, rather than rely on pouches attached to webbing.
Ferro Concepts The Slickster Plate Carrier
One of the best features on the Ferro Slickster, is the elastic cummerbund, with built in pouches. I run elastic pouches on all my vests for good reason. They can accommodate any similar sized equipment including: 5.56 magazines, flash bangs, radios, 7.62 magazines, and most importantly, your phone!
This plate carrier is perfect for those that need to leave all their gear on the plate carrier and don it at a moments notice. I think this is the best option for law enforcement officers, especially those that engage in undercover work. You can pick up this awesome plate carrier for $155. Next we’ll talk about another great option for police officers.
Velocity Systems Law Enforcement Plate Carrier
The Velocity Systems Law Enforcement Plate Carrier is a high quality carrier, clearly marketed towards police officers. I believe it would work very well for a variety of applications. I’ve used velocity systems vests and equipment for years, and I’ve never had a single failure.
Velocity Systems Law Enforcement Plate Carrier
This is another low profile option with no sewn on MOLLE webbing. It comes with MOLLE on the elastic cummerbund, and it can accept soft or hard armor, as desired. It’s nice that the plate carrier comes with built in QASM quick-release buckles so you can easily attach whichever placard you want.
If you like to run chest rigs, or already have some different placards, then this would be your top pick. It gives you a lot of flexibility with your setup, and it keeps you from buying redundant pouches. You can pick this plate carrier up for $175. Next we’ll talk about another great option from Velocity Systems.
Velocity Systems Lightweight Plate Carrier
The Velocity Systems Lightweight Plate Carrier is a great option for those looking for a lightweight, traditional plate carrier, with modern features. This plate carrier features a fuller cummerbund, with MOLLE sewn across it. It also integrates QASM buckles on the front. It has adjustable shoulder straps and cummerbund.
Velocity Systems Lightweight Plate Carrier
This photo does feature one of the Velocity systems placards in the upper right image. That doesn’t come with the vest. However, the interior elastic pouches on the cummerbund do come with the vest. This is a very interesting option, which allows you to maintain a cleaner exterior.
I’ve seen this feature on other vests, that have interior flaps to keep the equipment from pressing against your body. This plate carrier doesn’t appear to have any interior separation, which might cause some interior chaffing. The good news is that you don’t have to use those pouches, unless you want to.
You can purchase this plate carrier for around $189. This is probably one of the most flexible offerings, as you can run MOLLE pouches, placards, or use the internal pouches. Next we’ll talk about one of the most popular choices from Crye Precision.
Crye Precision Jumpable Plate Carrier JPC
The Crye Precision Jumpable Plate Carrier is one of the most popular plate carriers ever. This military plate carrier has been used by special operations forces like Rangers, and Delta Force, for many years. There is an updated version of this PC, but in my opinion you’re paying $50 more for something that’s only slightly different than the original.
Crye Precision JPC
The Crye JPC is a great option for those that need a minimalist plate carrier for all day wear. It features built in rifle magazine pouches in the front plate bag, and an open air MOLLE cummerbund, allowing for easy access to your equipment.
There are several cable routing options on the shoulder straps. You can also route other cables, and drinking tubes along the shoulders, underneath the velcro covers. As of this writing you can pick up this original version of the JPC for $209, which is a very reasonable price for any Crye plate carrier.
Agilite K-Zero Plate Carrier
The Agilite K-Zero Plate Carrier is an awesome new plate carrier designed for hard use. It has a lot of well thought out features, that I haven’t seen on other plate carriers. This plate carrier was also sent to me for testing. You can follow the link above for the full results of my test.
The Agilite K-Zero Plate Carrier
The image above features a Velocity Systems placard that doesn’t come with the plate carrier. It should give you an idea of what it looks like as you would wear it.
The padding on this plate carrier is excellent. It even has hash marks on the interior that allow you to adjust the shoulder straps to the exact same length. That sounds trivial, but I’ve definitely noticed folks with a misaligned plate carrier, because one strap was shorter than the other. That will definitely affect comfort.
You can also check out some cool accessories for this plate carrier like the MAP Assault Panel. You can read the full review here. Long story short, I’ve been impressed with Agilite. Currently, you can pick up the K-Zero plate carrier for $260.
Now that we’ve covered all 7 of the best budget plate carriers, we’ll review some good ideas to keep in mind when using your plate carrier. I’ll give you some tips and tricks for setting it up to best work for your needs.
Best Budget Plate Carriers Set Up and Use
Once you find your plate carrier and armor, you need to consider how to make it work for you. For the vast majority of users it makes sense to use a QASM compatible placard for plate carrier setup. This has the added benefit of allowing you to wear the placard as a chest rig when you don’t want to wear a full vest.
No matter how you set up your plate carrier, I recommend a few principles that I’ve learned over the years. First, make sure your plates are high enough to cover your vital organs. Your front plate should about an inch under the bony notch on your throat. The rear plate needs to be right around the bony point on your upper back / neck region.
Secondly, try and keep bulky equipment off your flanks. This allows you to draw your pistol and move your arms more easily, especially when running. It also allows you to fit in vehicles and through doorways much easier.
Critical Equipment Setup
Lastly, if you have multiple vests, do your best to keep each set up as similar as possible. If you have a vest for patrol, and another for tactical operations, you should keep the key pieces of equipment the same. I always run my radio at my 10 O’clock, and I keep my spare magazines on my belt, both rifle and pistol.
This ensures that my critical equipment is in the same place. You don’t want to try and remember where your pistol mags are in an emergency! Other less important equipment can change from vest to vest. Just make sure you actually train in each set up. If you can’t grab and replace items on your vest, in full darkness, then you aren’t as familiar with your gear as you should be.
My last tip is for your medical equipment. I tend to recommend carrying two tourniquets, two chest seals, and some hemostatic gauze. I also like an H bandage or elastic wrap. For most folks this is more than sufficient, and can be made into a compact package. Most importantly, you need to keep it somewhere where you can access it with both hands.
I’ve seen SWAT teams and other military units mount their trauma / first aid kit in the middle of their back, and other terrible locations. You need to be able to treat yourself! Now let’s get to my final thoughts about these best budget plate carriers.
Best Budget Plate Carriers: Final Thoughts
I expect many of you reading this article are looking to purchase a plate carrier for different reasons. My best advice is to take some time looking over the offerings that seem to fit your needs the best. Don’t get hung up with brand names, or which company has the best social media marketing.
I know of several well known brands in the tactical industry that have great marketing, but you couldn’t pay me to use their equipment. In some cases, these companies have billion dollar contracts with the military, and yet their products are unreliable and unsafe.
I say all of that to say that just because a company is popular or a brand is well known, does not indicate that it’s a good product for you. Try to be objective about your needs, and pick the equipment that seems best for you.
If you have any comments or questions about finding a quality plate carrier, put them in the comments section, and I’ll get you an answer. Now get out there and get training. Don’t forget to join the email list below!
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