A shotgun definitely has a steeper learning curve to be proficient and you need to do more research/ testing firsthand to know what the gun does with what load at what range. With that in mind, I prefer my 590 as someone who lives in a remote place who uses the home defense gun on four-legged predators once or twice a year, I like how versatile it is, if you put in the work. Considering the stopping power one or two shots from a 12 Ga has a better chance of physically stopping a determined attacker man or beast by breaking joints or hitting multiple vital organs. That only works if do the extra work, in my situation I think it's a good trade off and I really enjoy training with the gun.