Depends on what you want to do with it. I have both and enjoy shooting both. I like the 16 for hunting. It will do anything the 12 will But the Gun is generally lighter and easier to carry. The 28 is really fun on a skeet range but very limited in hunting applications. If I were absolutely limited to one or the other I would go 16 for its versatility, but the choice is hard and again depends heavily on the intended use.

I have both. The 28 is great for doves, and that size quail and is ok on game farm pheasants. I’ve killed a few wild pheasants with it but you need to be very selective and pass on some shots.
The 16 is much better for overall hunting.

Why not a 10?
Of the two you mentioned, I’m thinking the 28 is for you. The 16 doesn’t offer an improvement over either the 20 or the 12 but the 28 offers a very light gun and is outside the bell curve of the more popular duo.

Small game and skeet? Go with the 28

Lightweight 16 gauge guns kick like a blue mule and there are few, if any, light loads available. If shooting mostly clay targets I would go with the 28 gauge. If mostly hunting maybe the 16 gauge.

Either way, plan in loading your own. There are far more components available with the 28

28. A 16 can't do anything a 12 or 20 can't likely do better. Yeah the aficionados will always yell out trying to lure more people to their moribund cause, but the facts stand. A 28 is the lightest effective gauge for most of us for small game and clay pigeons, and many of the guns for it are quite nice.

I love both. I use my 16s now almost exclusively for (wild) pheasants. The 28ga is awesome for grouse sized birds and smaller and target shooting and game farm pheasants (and pigeons for dog training). My 12 ga O/u is pretty much relegated to the safe.

You'll wind up getting both.

Based on personal experience? I can relate.

Get the 28 gauge and be done with it. The sixteen is just another big bore, with the added burden of trying to find ammo for it. Even if you reload, it's the most difficult to find components for. The 28 gauge is plain delightful. It's all you need for casual skeet and it's more than enough for smaller upland game.

What small game?
How much and what manner of Skeet?
How much do you wish to spend?
Do you have an action preference.
Are you slight in stature or...husky?

Ditto 28. Consider reloading

For hunting up to grouse the 28 with 3/4 ounce is perfect. For preserve pheasant the 1 ounce loads in #6 & #5 are great! Perfect skeet gauge as well and it will simple hammer any clay out 45 yards with #8 shot. Not limited for hunting out to 40 yards. The AA28HS ammo is perfect till you need shot larger that #7.5 than it is the Win Super X which is an also HS hull. I would love a 16 SxS or O/U for hunting with a lighter than 12 gauge gun in the open fields.

A 20 will shoot any load a 28 will, (you will need to reload), the 16 ga is a great upland gun, the new A5 Sweet Sixteen at less than 6 pounds is light enough, and will shoot any load down to 3/4 ounce. And the Tristar Viper G2 at 6 1/2 pounds will shoot 3/4 ounce reloads. Basically if you have a 20 and 12 you can do anything a 28 or 16 can do if you reload. That being said, I have 9 16 Ga shotguns, and 5 20 Ga shotguns, and 18 12 Ga shotguns . I really see no need for a 28.


cdb

The reason you can't decide, Neither one makes any sense.
If they made sense you could decide, but they don't.

The 3 inch 20 pretty well destroyed the 16.
The 28 is just an amebic 20, that is too costly for ammo, and only stays alive because of skeet. It complicates life, and life is too damn complicated already.

The 16, I guess is still quite popular in Europe. Do you live in Europe?

Lion21,

IMO save your money and eventually purchase one of each, the 16 gauge is a great Grouse and Woodcock gun, the 28 is great hunt gun for Grouse, Woodcock and Quail also. I also shoot my 28 a lot on the Clays course, especially like shooting true doubles, keeps me sharp for true double Grouse hunting. I would purchase the L.C. Smith 16 gauge 1st, then the new L.C. Smith 28, made for Marlin by Zabala in Spain.

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Yes! The only gauge I don't own is the 10ga. 28,20,16s have become my upland favorites. 12 for waterfowl and turkeys. .410 kids first gun, target shooting and pest slayer.

I'm not a hunter, so I can't comment on that.
For Skeet and Sporting Clays, the 28 is just plain fun. So much fun, I just put down a deposit on another one.

The only shells the Walmart near me now have in stock are 16 gauge and 28 gauge. I am thinking I should buy them all up and trade for the 12 gauge shells I need. No longer own any 16 gauge or 28 gauge.

Probably a good strategy