The MAG-95 incorporates most of the user facilities to which shooters in the West have become accustomed, but which have been absent from most Eastern Bloc pistols until recently.

The obvious caliber choice was the more powerful, NATO standard 9×19mm Parabellum (9mm Luger), to replace the old 9×18mm Makarov.

It had advantages over a competitor, the WIST-94, such as better reliability, durability and safety (better protection against accidental discharge, when dropped).

However, the MAG model was rejected by the Army, because it did not meet technical specifications, that were set in late 1993, exceeding mass (800g) and dimensional criteria (190x135x33 mm).

In the following years, the MAG was produced for the Polish Border Guard and Prison Service (Służba Więzienna) and for the civilian market, though in small series (the market for civilian guns in Poland was very small due to restrictive gun laws).

[2] The pistol has a good reputation among users: It is considered a precise, well balanced and durable weapon.

It was simpler and cheaper than the WIST-94 and, in addition, some Army users preferred the MAG as a personal sidearm.

[1] In 2008, the new variant MAG-08 was introduced, with a Picatinny rail and minor other improvements, developed by the manufacturer's successor, Fabryka Broni Łucznik.