First off, there are SO many dang threads on this.....
Second....you need to sit down and prioritize whats important to you.
cost?
Weight?
caliber?
# of rounds?
auto or wheelgun?
size?
and an important one to me, stainless? carbon steel? plastic?
So, what was important to ME.
Weight, and size -- nobody likes to carry around something they will probably never use that is huge and bulky....if you leave at home half the time, its worthless....but wonderful to "show off"
this gun FITS IN MY JEANS POCKET, smartcarry hahaha, i laugh, how long does it take you to draw a gun out of your underwear? sure, its big...great....but when you need it, DRAW IS IMPORTANT.
Caliber-- my OPINION from a large amount of reading (because ive never shot anybody) is that less than 9mm is "questionable" and the bigger/faster the bullet the better (DEPENDING ON WHAT YOU CAN HANDLE AND USE EFFECTIVELY)
wheelgun--reliability when i need it, wheelguns are KNOWN for their reliability (many will say their gun is JUST as reliable but a MISFEED will never happen unless you dont know how to pull a trigger in a wheelgun)
Rust --when you have a gun close to your body, moisture is guaranteed...and you may LOVE to clean your gun 2 times a week everyweek...but not me, i prefer to clean after shooting it, therefor i found a gun that is "rust resistant" and i would say rust "proof".
This led over an exhausting search of "mouseguns" which there are many wonderful threads....
What it finally came down for me is the great size, weight, caliber, and rust factors of the smith and wesson 340 pd. There is a lot of info on this gun, but if you have ANY questions, feel free to contact me.
When I bought my CCW, I went through the same process as you right now.
good luck