MIL (Milliradian)
Also known as: mrad
An angular unit equal to 1/1000th of a radian — about 3.6 inches at 100 yards (or 10 cm at 100 m) — used for ranging and scope adjustments.
A milliradian (mil or mrad) is 1/1000th of a radian. At 100 yards it subtends about 3.6 inches; at 100 meters, exactly 10 centimeters, which is why mils pair so cleanly with the metric system. Mil-based scopes typically adjust in 0.1-mil clicks, each moving impact ~0.36 inches at 100 yards.
Mils shine for ranging and communicating corrections. Because the reticle and the turrets use the same unit, a shooter can measure a miss in mils through the scope and dial that exact value — 'point-three left, point-two up' — with no inch-to-click conversion. Long-range and precision shooters increasingly prefer mil/mil setups for this consistency.