The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) estimates 1,587,049 guns sold in December 2025, based on the results of a purchaser’s name being processed through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The figure is a 3.4 percent decline when compared to the trade organization’s number for the same month in 2024, when total volume came in at 1,642,270.
The group’s estimates are considered a relative barometer of industry health, but the slight decline might be partially fueled by the price of an NFA tax stamp dropping to $0 for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and “any other weapons” on New Year's Day. Thousands of enthusiasts took advantage of the cash savings by delaying a purchase that may have otherwise made in 2025. On New Year’s Day alone, 150,000 NFA applications were submitted to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
On July 4, 2025. the measure authorizing the price drop was signed into law as part of President Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill. The hearing-healthy decision dominated firearm news throughout 2025 and the nearly six-year string of more than 1 million monthly firearm sales came to an unceremonious halt.
Annual & Quarterly Comparisons
NSSF estimates 15,239,011 firearm sales in 2024 resulted in an FBI NICS check. For 2025, the organization’s figure came in at 14,612,314, reflecting a 4.1 percent decline in demand last year.
The numbers for the fourth quarters of 2025 and 2024, respectively, were 4,294,591 and 4,459,900. The decrease of 3.7 percent last year is slightly better than the entire year’s decline.
It is important to keep in mind, however, that the NSSF figures are estimates and well below actual lawful purchases of firearms. Twenty-eight states currently have at least one qualified alternative permit, which under the Brady Act allows the permit-holder—who has undergone a background check to obtain the permit—to purchase a firearm from a licensed dealer without a separate additional background check for that transfer. The number of NICS checks in these states does not include these legal transfers based on qualifying permits, and NSSF does not adjust for these transfers.
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