I own a Shield.

I've tried the LC9. The sights are pretty much nonexistent and the trigger sucks. I hate the way it feels in my hand, too.

When comparing both, I feel that right off the bat, I shot more comfortably with the Shield. I also noticed that I immediately had a tighter grouping.

I think that if you're comparing by size, the LC9 wins, but only in that area. The Shield is definitely larger. As a small woman, it's harder for me to conceal the Shield than it would be for me to conceal the LC9. I can work around that, though.