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Firearm Secure Storage Survey Results and Statistics

Survey findings on household firearm presence, storage practices, child access, attitudes, storage devices, and access time.

November 12, 2026 7 min read smartguncleaning.com Editorial Team

Contents

firearm secure storage survey results statistics: Household firearm presence and loading

Survey estimates of firearm presence and loading vary by state and by the group asked. The CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) firearm module covered adults aged 18 and older in 8 states. Its home measure included firearms kept in a garage, outdoor storage area, or motor vehicle, while excluding BB guns and guns that could not fire. The figures below use each state’s most recent module year, either 2021 or 2022.

BRFSS measureLower reported state estimateHigher reported state estimate
Firearm kept in or around the home, among all adultsCalifornia, 2022: 18.42% (95% CI 17.13–19.71)Alaska, 2021: 50.58% (95% CI 48.42–52.74)
Firearm stored loaded, among respondents reporting a firearm at homeMinnesota, 2022: 19.46% (95% CI 17.88–21.03)North Carolina, 2021: 43.82% (95% CI 40.71–46.94)
No firearm loaded, among respondents reporting a firearm at homeNorth Carolina, 2021: 52.74% (95% CI 49.61–55.86)Minnesota, 2022: 77.51% (95% CI 75.84–79.18)

These are state-specific weighted estimates, not a single national prevalence figure. The first row has all adult respondents as its denominator. The loading rows apply only to respondents who said a firearm was kept in or around the home. “No firearm loaded” is the source’s response category; it does not describe locking status. CDC BRFSS firearm storage report, Tables 1–2

firearm secure storage survey results statistics: Locked, unloaded, and unlocked storage patterns

A separate analysis of 2022 BRFSS data from California, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, and Ohio described 11,722 respondents reporting firearms in or around the home. Its constructed storage outcome divided respondents into 3 categories: 70.3% reported firearms that were not loaded (N=8371), 14.4% reported firearms loaded but locked (N=1544), and 15.4% reported firearms loaded and unlocked (N=1807). These are the study’s specified categories and population, rather than estimates for all adults. Five-state BRFSS psychosocial study, results paragraph before Table 1

The CDC report also examined locking status among respondents who reported a loaded firearm in or around the home. In Alaska in 2021, 40.48% reported the loaded firearm locked (95% CI 35.15–45.82), while 58.70% reported it unlocked (95% CI 53.38–64.03). In Ohio in 2022, 50.22% reported it locked (95% CI 46.81–53.64), and 48.75% reported it unlocked (95% CI 45.34–52.16). The estimates come from different state-year samples, and the denominator is loaded-firearm respondents, not everyone with a household firearm. CDC BRFSS firearm storage report, Table 3

In the CDC module, “unlocked” means the firearm could be accessed or fired without requiring a key, combination, or hand/fingerprint. That operational definition makes the categories useful for comparing reported access conditions, while leaving respondents to report their own household practices. The five-state study’s categories and the CDC table should be read within their separate study designs and denominators. CDC BRFSS firearm storage report Five-state BRFSS psychosocial study

firearm secure storage survey results statistics: Child access and household context

Child-related estimates describe different aspects of household context. In the CDC report, among loaded-firearm respondents who also reported a child or adolescent aged 17 or younger at home, the share reporting a loaded firearm stored unlocked was 25.24% in Ohio in 2022 (95% CI 19.94–30.54) and 41.42% in Alaska in 2021 (95% CI 31.36–51.48). The population is already limited to respondents with a loaded firearm and a young person at home; these are not percentages of all households with children. CDC BRFSS firearm storage report, Table 3, respondents with firearm loaded and unlocked

The five-state 2022 BRFSS analysis instead reported the weighted composition of storage groups by whether children under 18 lived in the household. Children were present for 23.86% of the loaded-and-unlocked group and 38.88% of the loaded-but-locked group. In the loaded-and-unlocked group, 76.14% had no children in the household. These shares describe who made up each storage category; they are not the likelihood of a particular storage practice among households with children. Five-state BRFSS psychosocial study, Table 1, “Children in household”

Together, the two studies show why denominator labels matter. One CDC estimate concerns unlocked storage within the subset reporting both a loaded firearm and a child at home. The five-state table shows the proportion of each storage group that had children. Neither statistic alone establishes why a household chose a particular arrangement or what access a specific child had. CDC BRFSS firearm storage report Five-state BRFSS psychosocial study

firearm secure storage survey results statistics: Demographic patterns in reported storage

The five-state BRFSS study tabulated weighted demographic composition within its storage categories. Among respondents with household firearms, people aged 65 or older made up 34.04% of the loaded-and-unlocked group and 21.84% of the loaded-but-locked group. Men made up 71.02% of the loaded-and-unlocked group and 54.08% of the not-loaded group; women made up 28.98% and 45.92% of those respective groups.

CharacteristicLoaded and unlockedComparison storage group
Age 65 or older34.04%Loaded but locked: 21.84%
Men71.02%Not loaded: 54.08%
Women28.98%Not loaded: 45.92%
White61.29%Not loaded: 62.02%

White respondents accounted for 61.29% of the loaded-and-unlocked group and 62.02% of the not-loaded group. The table’s numbers are weighted shares within storage categories. They should not be read as storage rates for people aged 65 or older, men, women, or White respondents. The supplied figures also do not support claims about why these demographic compositions differ. Five-state BRFSS psychosocial study, Table 1, age, sex, and race and ethnicity sections

firearm secure storage survey results statistics: Reasons and attitudes about secure storage

A weighted online survey of Missouri adults was fielded in July and August 2020; its report was published in August 2023. Among Missouri firearm owners, 38.5% agreed that firearms should be stored locked and unloaded, with ammunition stored separately when not in use. Among owners who agreed with that statement, 43.4% reported storing their firearms locked and unloaded. These figures capture reported views and practices in the survey’s owner population at that time. Missouri Firearms Survey, Executive Summary, “Key Trends Related to Firearm Attitudes and Behaviors”

Among Missouri non-firearm owners living in households with firearms, 71.7% agreed that firearms should be stored locked and unloaded with ammunition stored separately. The survey also reported that 48.5% of firearm owners agreed that a firearm is not good for self-protection if they need time to unlock or load it. These statements illustrate attitudes related to secure storage and access time; they do not establish that either belief caused the reported practices. Missouri Firearms Survey, Executive Summary and page 17

The Missouri results should remain tied to their field dates. They are not estimates of current 2026 opinion or behavior, and the owner-only practice measures do not represent all Missouri adults. The reported percentages also come from different respondent groups, so they answer distinct questions rather than forming a single comparison of support and behavior. Missouri Firearms Survey, Methods and Executive Summary

firearm secure storage survey results statistics: Storage devices and access time

Among Missouri firearm owners who answered the storage-device question, 48.8% reported using a lock box or safe, 28.3% a trigger lock, and 26.0% a cable lock. The survey notes that device selections may overlap, so these percentages are not mutually exclusive shares and should not be added together. Missouri Firearms Survey, page 15, Figure 9

Among owners who reported storing a firearm in a lock box or safe, 45.4% reported a punch-code mechanism, 41.7% a key mechanism, and 12.9% fingerprint recognition. This narrower denominator means the mechanism figures do not describe all firearm owners or all storage devices. Missouri Firearms Survey, page 15, Figure 10

Missouri survey measureReported resultPopulation asked
Average time to access and load a firearm owned for protection against other people1 minute and 34 secondsMissouri firearm owners
Punch-code mechanism45.4%Owners using a lock box or safe
Key mechanism41.7%Owners using a lock box or safe
Fingerprint recognition12.9%Owners using a lock box or safe

The reported average access time includes loading the firearm and refers specifically to a firearm owned for protection against other people. It is a survey estimate, not a timed test of a particular device or a universal measure of access speed. The device and time results come from the Missouri survey fielded in July and August 2020, so their dates and respondent populations matter when interpreting them. Missouri Firearms Survey, pages 14–15, Figures 7 and 10

Sources

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