Fear and Loading: Top 10 FFL and NFA States

by
posted on September 11, 2019
** When you buy products through the links on our site, we may earn a commission that supports NRA's mission to protect, preserve and defend the Second Amendment. **
gun-manufacturers-1.jpg

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) recently released its “Firearms Commerce in the United States, Annual Statistical Update 2019.” The abbreviated report doesn’t include total information or manufacturer-specific numbers for 2018, but it does provide somewhat timely information on Federal Firearms Licenses (FFLs) and National Firearms Act (NFA) tax stamp numbers. FFLs nationwide declined from 136,081 (2017) to 134,191 (2018). The total number of NFA items registered, as of May 2019, was 6,058,390.

Here’s a look at the states with the top-10 numbers of FFLs and NFA-registered items from the report.

Top 10 States in FFL numbers (2018)
4,032—Michigan
4,109—Massachusetts
4,588—Missouri
4,589—North Carolina
4,646—Ohio
5,326—Illinois
6,250—Pennsylvania
7,170—Florida
7,925—California
10,733—Texas

Top 10 States with NFA-Registered Items (May 2019)
175,819—Ohio
175,819—New York
181,209—North Carolina
204,817—Arizona
225,993—Georgia
271,427—Pennsylvania
356,963—Virginia
376,666—California
432,581—Florida
725,368—Texas

On a more serious note, the BATFE figures indicate the volume of firearms manufactured in the United States during 2017 dropped by more than three million when compared to 2016. The numbers were 8,327,792 versus 11,497,441. Pistols made in 2017 totaled 3,691,010; rifles came in at 2,504,092; shotguns 653,139 and revolvers 720,917.

 

 

 

Latest

NRA Supports Hunters For The Hungry Programs
NRA Supports Hunters For The Hungry Programs

NRA Supports Hunters For The Hungry Programs

In 2025, Hunters for the Hungry programs across the United States will have extra support from the National Rifle Association, thanks to NRA Foundation donors.

Preview: Hornady Security RAPiD Safe Night Guard

The latest security product to leverage the company’s RAPiD Safe touch-free radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology, Hornady Security’s Night Guard is a ruggedly built handgun safe sized perfectly...

Hecho en México: The Mendoza RM22 Rifles

Mendoza Firearms claims that its RM22 rimfire rifle is the first indigenously produced rifle to be exported to the United States.

Preview: MGE 1911 Grips

Mammoth Grip Exchange is a small startup company that specializes in crafting replacement stock sets for M1911-pattern pistols in a dizzying assortment of exotic materials...

Gun Of The Week: Mossberg 990 Aftershock

For this Gun Of The Week episode, American Rifleman staffers hit the range with the Mossberg 990 Aftershock, a non-NFA, shotshell-firing firearm that provides plenty of power in a compact package.

The Armed Citizen® Nov. 14, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.