I'd say determine what kind of precision your rifle is capable of, then determine your budget and once that's done prioritize your use case.A rifle that isn't capable of 2 moa isn't much good past 500 yds/m
If your priority is engaging close range targets but you also want the ability to reach out to 500+ then an LPVO is a good call. For 500 yds/m I think a 1-6 is the minimum, you can do it with a good 1-4 but it really depends on how easy the targets are to resolve where you shoot (ie very obvious targets and berms or wooded area). I have a Vortex razor G3 1-10 on a .223 carbine and really like it for what I consider a "general purpose carbine": fast up close but capable out to 600.
If your priority is engaging longer range targets but want the ability to shoot close in, then something like an MPVO (2-10, 3-12) will give you better performance at distance (adjustable parallax, ability to dial vs hold, reticle better suited to shooting small targets at distance, generally better image at max magnification) whilst retaining a form factor closer to that of an LPVO and still capable (on min mag with an illuminated reticle) of making quick shots up close. You can also supplement it with an offset RDS. I have a Vortex Viper PST G2 2-10 on a different .223 carbine for this role and have also used Bushnell Elite 3-12 LRTSIs and NF NX8 2.5-20s on .308 and 6.5 Creed gas guns. The NX8 is more of a compact scope than an MPVO but that's spitting hairs.
A red dot and magnifier combo (especially the newer 5x magnifiers) can be stretched out to 500 (especially something with multiple aiming pots like an Eotech with the 2 or 4 dot reticle) but it gets tricky if the wind is blowing as it's difficult to accurately hold wind. Doable on big targets or in calm weather but not ideal. For this I really like the Eotech EXPS 3-2 with a Vortex 5x magnifier.
Hope this helps.
