Rust Assault Rifle (AK): Damage, Stats & How to Use It
The AK is Rust's benchmark rifle: 100 headshot damage, full-auto, high recoil. Full stats and how to control it.
Key takeaways
- 100 head / 51 chest, full auto, 30-round 5.56 mag
- High recoil — controlled bursts beat spraying
- Effective 250–400 m; tap-fire past ~150 m
- The all-rounder to learn recoil on first
The AK is Rust's benchmark rifle — the gun the rest of the roster is measured against. Here's exactly what it does and how to make the recoil work for you.
Stats
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Fire mode | Full auto |
| Head damage | 100 |
| Chest damage | 51 |
| Arms damage | 11 |
| Recoil | High |
| Effective range | 250–400 m |
| Magazine | 30 · 5.56 Rifle |
| Craft | Yes (180 s) · 3 mod slots |
What the numbers mean
100 to the head is the headline: an unmodded headshot deletes anyone short of a metal-tier helmet, and even then it's a two-tap. Body shots at 51 mean a clean 2-round chest burst kills an unarmoured target. The catch is the high recoil — the spray climbs and kicks hard, so the AK's real damage is gated entirely by how well you control it.
How to actually use it
- Learn the recoil pattern. The AK rewards muscle memory more than any gun in Rust; a controlled 5–7 round burst beats holding the trigger.
- Attachments matter. A muzzle brake tames the kick; a scope turns it into a mid-range laser. Even a handmade sight beats irons.
- Range discipline. Past ~150 m, tap-fire. It reaches 250–400 m, but only if you stop spraying.
Bottom line
The AK is the end-game all-rounder: the highest sustained threat in the game if you can control it, mediocre if you can't. Put your recoil practice here first — everything else in Rust gets easier once you can hold an AK on target.
Stats from the Rust Wiki.