Glock 19 Gen6 First Impressions: The Best Glock Ever?

Yep, it's a Glock. Thanks for reading!

Oh, I almost forgot: It comes in black.

Based on your comments on the Gen6 news, this is the review you expected. After all, the official announcement seemed yawn-worthy. A new texture. Ooh, an undercut. A flared magazine well, oh my gosh, stop the presses!

But is that really such a bad thing? Gaston Glock dropped a banger in 1982 that changed the handgun world forever. Soon after, Glocks became the standard sidearm for most American law enforcement. SOCOM rocks Glocks. The FBI rocks Glocks. The DEA rocks Glocks. People whose lives depend on their pistols trust Glock for its legendary reliability.

Sure, Mr. Glock made a chunky boy with a stiff trigger, but that was a small price to pay for a pistol That Just Works™.

But what if…you didn't have to pay that price? What if you could really have it all: That rock-solid Glock reliability, along with a grip that fits your hand just right and a trigger that pulls smooth as butter…straight out of the box?

Well, that's the Glock Gen6. It's by far the best Glock yet. Let's talk about how many small differences build to something big.

Disclosure: The Glock 19 Gen6 I discuss in this article was loaned to me by Glock for a limited time. I plan to purchase the pistol with my own funds at the end of the loan period.

• Caliber: 9×19mm
• Capacity: 15+1
• Overall Length: 7.28 inches (185mm)
• Barrel Length: 4.02 inches (102mm)
• Width: 1.35 inches (34.4mm)
• Height (with magazine): 5.04 inches (128mm)
• Weight (unloaded): 20.11 oz (570g)
• Weight (loaded): 29.10 oz (825g)
• Trigger Pull: 5.8 lbf (26N)
• Sights: Polymer (optics-ready with 3 plates included)
• Backstraps Included: Medium (+2mm), Large (+4mm)
• MSRP: $745
• Street Price: ~$620 ( Glock Store)
• Availability: January 20, 2026

Gen6 Ergonomics: How the Glock 19 Actually Fits Your Hand

When you retrieve the Glock 19 from that familiar black clamshell case, the first thing you're going to notice is how it fits in your hand, as in, it actually fits in your hand. It doesn't feel like you're holding the remote to your grandma's 1985 Magnavox.

There are a couple of reasons for that. One is the new palm swell, which is just a fancy way of saying that the grip contours against your hand. The other is that undercut in the trigger guard, a little u-shaped curve that makes room for your middle finger.

Those are two very minor changes that seem boring in a bullet list, but make for an immediate first impression. This is the first Glock I've held that truly felt like an extension of my hand and not an object shoved into it. I handed it to a Glock-skeptical friend who immediately said, “Wow, this actually feels good in my hand!”

Extended Thumb Rest and Beaver Tail: Foolproof Grip Reference

The most visually distinctive feature of the Gen6 is two little ledges along each side of the gun. Glock calls them extended thumb rests, but most of us call gas pedals. But they're more than cool adornments. In fact, I expect every major handgun manufacturer to be copying them in the years to come, because once you try them, it's just the most dead-obvious idea in the world, like the little nipples on the F and J keys on your keyboard.

Additionally, the gas pedals help make sense of the grip extensions for the average shooter. Can't get your thumb to the pedal without your hands crashing into each other? Ah, now you know you need to spend a few minutes adding one of the extensions. It includes 2mm and 4mm extensions out of the box, along with an extended trigger guard pin and a pin replacement tool.

Beyond just being a reference point, the gas pedals give you an additional point of contact when you're shooting. Pressing your off-hand thumb into the gas pedal helps you control recoil and line up follow-on shots more quickly.

The gas pedals are covered in that new RTF6 texture as the rest of the grip (more on that below), but even so, I'm finding that keeping my thumb on it during shots, especially rapid fire, is taking some conscious effort. I wish they jutted out just a touch more, though I'm sure there are good design reasons why they don't (such as holster compatibility). I also suspect that some enterprising third party will offer extenders.

But overall, the gas pedals are a big win that makes the Gen6 Glock 19 even more accessible and accurate. Glock isn't the first to offer them, but I'll bet money that they'll popularize them.

But that doesn't really matter, because this trigger is so much better than previous stock Glock triggers, despite a 5.8-pound pull weight.

Have you ever taken a bone from a well-cooked piece of chicken and snapped it between your fingers? That is what previous Glock triggers always felt like to me: A very heavy trigger pull that suddenly gives way with very little tactile feedback. Others would describe it as "mushy" or "gritty."

However you describe it, it took me a lot of practice with my first Glock 19 to fix a flinch that caused my points of impact to be low and to the left. It had been a while since I had shot a 19, so I fully expected to do that dance once again.

To my surprise, that wasn't necessary, and I was pleasantly surprised with my first few groupings. The break feels more predictable, and the reset doesn't feel as mushy as previous generations, but I need more trigger time to fully assess it.

The new trigger feels much more natural, for lack of a better word. The trigger isn't lighter, but the "flat" shape gives your finger better control of the trigger, so it feels lighter.

If you've always hated Glock triggers, consider giving the Gen6 a try; you might be pleasantly surprised.

I will note a design change that annoys me a bit. In previous Glocks, there was a cheap trick for dry fire practice: You could slip a small piece of paper or other thin object between the slide and barrel to put it slightly out of battery, which let you pull the trigger over and over again without racking the slide.

Unfortunately, that no longer works. If the gun is even slightly out of battery, the trigger will not pull. Glock tells me that it should work if it’s far enough out of battery, but I can’t get it to work no matter how far back I pull the slide. I assume it’s a new out-of-battery safety feature, which makes sense, but bottom line: We need to find a new way to dry fire these Gen6 Glocks.

Grip Texture: Business in the Front, Party in the Back

Grip texture is such a tricky thing because you want the pistol to cling tight to your hand, but—if this is a carry piece—you don't want sandpaper rubbing against your butt or belly. Make it completely smooth, and it'll feel nice against your skin, but you might "drop the soap" at an inopportune time. Wrap it in grip tape, and you'll never drop it, but you might sand off something you'll miss. This is an underappreciated aspect of carry guns, but the reality is that a carry gun will spend more time in a holster than it will in your hand, so comfort is key. Grip and comfort are opposite goals, making grip texture a challenge for gun designers.

To solve this conundrum, Glock developed the new RTF6 texture, which combines the more-aggressive RTF2 texture with the gentler RTF4 texture. It's still early, but the RTF6 texture seems to have hit the sweet spot of offering a Velcro-like grip in your hand, without feeling like a cheese grater against softer skin.

The RTF6 texture felt good in my hand when shooting, but to test the other end of the equation, I put it in my old Alien Gear Cloak Tuck at the 4 o’clock position for a one-hour drive to Bowling Green, Kentucky. I pulled up my shirt so the grip was pressed against the skin of my lower back. I sat for the hour-long drive in my truck, attended an hour-long meeting, and then endured another hour-long drive back home, experiencing no noticeable discomfort. You can definitely feel the texture, but it's not irritating.

Glock 19 Gen6 Optics Ready System

I’m an old fart dragging my feet on the pistol optic revolution, but every Gen6 Glock is optics compatible—with a price to match, whether you like it or not, so I had to test it out. Our friends at Meprolight were kind enough to send me their brand-spanking new Mepro MPO-F with a green reticle, and apparently, I’m only the second person outside of Meprolight to possess one. The three-segment reticle (33 MOA ring, 3 MOA dot, or both) is exceptionally bright, and it features all the characteristics you would expect from an MPO-F, including an IPX7 waterproof rating, automatic brightness control, and shake-awake functionality. (See our review of the red version of the MPO-F.)

I’m fascinated by Glock’s new mounting system. In the old Glock MOS setup, you had a plain rectangle cut in the slide, and then you would use a cast-metal adapter plate to fit your optic’s footprint to the gun.

A lot of people complained about this system, but it’s hard to distinguish design flaw versus user error. Did they remember to Loctite their screws? Did they use the right length of screw? Did they tighten to the specified torque? And again, it’s hard to tell because anecdotes are all over the map. However, one consistent complaint is that Glock cut costs by using cast metal plates that tended to bend or warp over time.

Glock heard the complaints about cheap plates loud and clear, and went with something even cheaper for Gen6 plates: Plastic. Which is really funny, but it may just work, and I’ll tell you why. Instead of a simple rectangular cutout, the Gen6 slide has an hourglass-shaped recess that cradles both the plastic plate.

For those keeping score at home: I used the #6-40x10 screws with pre-applied thread locker included with the MPO-F. The MPO-F spec sheet specifies 12 inch-pounds, but my lowest Wheeler F.A.T. Stix is 15 inch-pounds, which should be close enough.

Glock says this will be better than traditional plates because the plastic plate acts as a crush washer that absorbs shocks. I’ll be curious to see how that plays out over the long run. Will the plate remain intact? Will optics mounted to the Gen6 hold zero?

I put 90 rounds through the Glock 19 with the MPO-F installed. Functionally, everything seemed to hold up, but I wasn’t thrilled with my groupings, even at close range. I suspect most of that was a skill issue, and the fact that it was a windy 23°F when I tested everything. For longer-term testing, my next stop is a nice, warm, wind-free indoor gun range where I can really dial in this MPO-F because I want to know how well these plastic plates hold up.

• Ergonomics: Palm swell, undercut trigger guard, extended thumb rests (gas pedals), and enlarged beaver tail. The grip actually fits your hand now.
• Trigger: New flat-faced design with better feel and more predictable break.
• Grip texture: RTF6 combines aggressive RTF2 and gentler RTF4 for better purchase without shredding your skin.
• Slide serrations: Deeper cuts for easier manipulation.
• Magazine well: Actually flared for easier reloads.
• Optics system: New mounting system with plastic plates instead of cast metal.

Conclusion: Is It Worth the Upgrade?

If you're a Glock loyalist, this is an easy call: Yes, absolutely, even from the Gen5. While the evolution from Gen3 to Gen4 was small, and then likewise Gen4 to Gen5, the Gen6 addresses nearly every complaint Glock shooters have ever had. The ergonomics are on point, the trigger feels better, the slide cuts are deeper, the magwell is flared, it's optics-capable out of the box, and on top of all that, you get the fantastic RTF6 texture and gas pedals.

Others will say, "Who cares? There are plenty of cheap Gen3 clones on the market, some of which have these same features."

Fair point.

But for a carry pistol, if I ever unfortunately need to use it, I need it to do its one job flawlessly. When death is on the line, I need 100% reliability.

For me, it's Glock.