I'm a beginning ham, so I don't have much else to compare it against, but this antenna works much better than the "rubber duck" that comes with the Baofeng UV-5R. (You'll need an adapter if you want to use it with a UV-5R, as this antenna is BNC-male, while the UV-5R expects SMA-female.)Update: After a few months, part of the antenna seems loose, but it still works well. It just makes me wonder how long it'll last. I have been carrying it attached to my handheld stuffed into a cargo pocket or backpack, so I've probably been a bit rough on it.