For the most part spring and gas powered airsoft sniper rifles both offer the same performance. However, there are definitely some pretty big differences between the 2 types of guns that you should know about. For example, you will never need any additional power source in order to fire a spring airsoft sniper rifle, but you will always need to purchase gas in order to fire a gas powered airsoft sniper rifle.

Again, the performance between gas and spring airsoft rifles is pretty similar, but one important thing to consider is that the temperature can affect the velocity of a gas powered airsoft gun. Generally this wont be much of an issue though, unless you play somewhere that is abnormally cold. One benefit of spring airsoft rifles is that they always perform exactly the same regardless of the temperature.

When it comes to pricing, spring airsoft sniper rifles are a bit cheaper than the gas powered airsoft sniper rifles (generally the price difference is around $50 – $85, give or take a few dollars). Also, not only are the gas airsoft rifles more expensive up front, they also require purchasing gas on an on-going basis, since they need gas in order to fire. So with that being said and done, clearly spring powered airsoft sniper rifles are cheaper than gas airsoft guns, especially in the long run.

Other than the magazines, spring and gas airsoft sniper rifles look exactly the same (it is pretty much impossible to tell them apart without looking at the magazines). Gas powered airsoft rifles actually store their gas right in the actual magazine, and spring airsoft guns have magazines that only hold airsoft BBs, nothing more.

Literally every spring airsoft sniper rifle is a single shot (usually bolt action) gun, which also holds true for most of the gas powered airsoft sniper rifles as well. However, some of the gas powered airsoft sniper rifles are semi-automatic, which is a huge benefit that spring powered airsoft guns will never be able to offer (since you have to cock back a spring for each shot).

When it comes to actual performance, generally gas powered airsoft sniper rifles shoot at a slightly higher velocity VS the spring powered ones. On average gas airsoft rifles shoot about 50-100 FPS faster than spring airsoft rifles. Also, it is much easier to cock a gas powered rifle since there is no heavy spring to pull back.

Accuracy is exactly the same between spring and gas powered airsoft sniper rifles. However, in some cases you may want to use heavier airsoft BBs for gas powered airsoft guns, due to the fact that they usually shoot a littler faster than spring airsoft guns (and the faster your airsoft gun shoots, the heavier the BB that you will have to use in order to maintain consistent accuracy).

When it comes time to decide whether to go with a gas powered or spring powered airsoft sniper rifle, just remember that each one has its strengths and weaknesses. If you want a semi-automatic airsoft sniper rifle, then you will have to go with gas powered one. If you want to save money, and never want to worry about buying gas, then go with a spring powered sniper rifle.