Gun Violence by the Numbers: What FBI Data Actually Shows
Firearms dominate American homicide in a way unique among developed nations. Here's what the FBI's expanded homicide data reveals about weapon types, circumstances, and victims.
Key Insights
- →Firearms are used in 85.2% of all US murders, far higher than any other weapon type
- →23,434 Americans were murdered with firearms in the most recent data year
- →Gun homicides outnumber knife homicides by more than 4-to-1 in the United States
- →Handguns account for the majority of firearm homicides, with rifles representing a small fraction
- →The US firearm homicide rate is 25x higher than other high-income countries
- →Gun violence disproportionately affects young Black males aged 15-34 in urban areas
The Firearm Dominance
In 2024, firearms were used in 85.2% of all murders in the United States — 23,434 out of 27,512 total. No other weapon category comes close. Knives and cutting instruments account for roughly 6%, while personal weapons (hands, fists, feet) account for about 2%.
This ratio has been remarkably stable over decades. Firearms have consistently been the weapon of choice in 65-80% of US murders since the FBI began detailed tracking. The shift over time has been slightly toward handguns and away from rifles and shotguns.
Weapon Breakdown
| Weapon Type | Count | % of Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total firearms: | 11,717 | 42.6% | |
| Handguns | 6,246 | 22.7% | |
| Firearms, type not stated | 4,565 | 16.6% | |
| Knives or cutting instruments | 1,566 | 5.7% | |
| Other weapons or weapons not stated | 1,174 | 4.3% | |
| Personal weapons (hands, fists, feet, etc.)1,2 | 633 | 2.3% | |
| Rifles | 401 | 1.5% | |
| Other guns | 356 | 1.3% | |
| Blunt objects (clubs, hammers, etc.) | 283 | 1.0% | |
| Narcotics | 226 | 0.8% | |
| Shotguns | 149 | 0.5% | |
| Asphyxiation | 96 | 0.3% |
Murder Weapons Breakdown
Victim Age Distribution
Murder Weapons by Year
Circumstances of Murder
The FBI also tracks the circumstances surrounding homicides. The most common are arguments and altercations, followed by felonies in progress (robbery, drug dealing, burglary). This challenges the popular image of premeditated, stranger-on-stranger murder — most murders arise from conflicts between people who know each other.
| Circumstance | Count |
|---|---|
| Other than felony type total: | 7,581 |
| Unknown | 7,011 |
| Other arguments | 4,658 |
| Other-not specified | 2,441 |
| Felony type total: | 1,184 |
| Narcotic drug laws | 416 |
| Robbery | 264 |
| Other-not specified | 259 |
| Gangland killings | 259 |
| Institutional killings | 103 |
Victim Demographics
Murder victimization is not evenly distributed. Young men aged 18-34 are disproportionately represented among victims. Males account for roughly 77% of all murder victims. This pattern has held for decades.
The Rifle Myth
Despite outsized media attention on rifles (including so-called "assault weapons"), they account for a small fraction of gun murders. Handguns are used in the vast majority of firearm homicides. More people are killed with knives, or even bare hands, than with rifles in a typical year.
This doesn't diminish the horror of mass shootings — which often involve rifles — but it does provide important context for policy discussions. The weapon doing the most damage in American communities, day in and day out, is the handgun.
International Context
The US firearm homicide rate is roughly 25 times higher than other high-income countries. This disparity is driven almost entirely by gun availability — the US has more civilian-owned firearms (approximately 400 million) than any other nation, both in total and per capita. Whether this correlation implies causation is one of the most contested questions in criminology.