Americans Closed Out 2025 With Nearly 1.6 Million Gun Purchases in December
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The final month of 2025 ended with a familiar trend: Americans continued buying firearms at a pace that most industries would envy. According to newly released data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, a total of 2,220,852 background checks were processed through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) in December 2025. While that figure represents a 16.1 percent decline from December 2024’s 2.65 million checks, the headline number masks a more telling reality. When the data is adjusted to reflect likely retail firearm sales, gun demand remains remarkably strong.
After removing permit checks and administrative rechecks, an adjustment standard used by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), December 2025 logged an estimated 1,587,049 retail gun sales. That figure is only 3.4 percent lower than December 2024, a difference of roughly 60,000 firearms, and once again clears the seven-figure mark. “The fact that nearly 1.6 million background checks were conducted in December for the retail sale of a firearm demonstrates that Second Amendment rights are critically important to Americans,” said Mark Oliva, NSSF’s Director of Public Affairs.
Zooming out, the annual numbers tell an even clearer story. For all of 2025, NSSF estimates that at least 14.6 million background checks were conducted for retail firearm sales through NICS. While that total is lower than the pandemic-era highs, it still places 2025 among the strongest years for lawful gun ownership in modern history.
“This is an undeniable fact that lawful gun ownership is a valued and treasured right exercised by tens of millions of Americans,” Oliva said. “Certain political figures continue to rail against and restrict the free exercise of Second Amendment rights and do so at the peril of ignoring these law-abiding citizens who are voting with their wallets.” That demand persists even as violent crime and gun violence data show nationwide declines, undercutting claims that rising gun ownership correlates with rising crime. “These Americans are, quite literally, investing in their personal safety and freedom,” Oliva added.
Importantly, NICS figures still do not reflect the true number of firearms sold nationwide.
Federal background check data excludes several categories of lawful gun transfers, including:
Private, person-to-person sales permitted under state law in many jurisdictions
Firearm purchases made using carry permits that qualify as Brady Act exemptions, allowing licensed dealers to complete transfers without initiating a new NICS check
Firearms built at home unless assembled on serialized frames or receivers or voluntarily registered
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives currently recognizes Brady exemptions in 28 states, meaning a significant number of legal firearm transfers never appear in NICS data at all. As a result, the real number of firearms sold in 2025 is almost certainly well above the 14.6 million estimate. Despite relentless political pressure, regulatory expansion, and ongoing rhetoric aimed at discouraging gun ownership, Americans continue to exercise their Second Amendment rights in large numbers.
December’s nearly 1.6 million retail gun sales—and a full year exceeding 14 million—underscore a simple reality: lawful gun ownership remains deeply embedded in American culture. At 2 If By Sea Tactical, we’ll continue tracking the data the media often downplays—and reminding readers that rights exercised responsibly and peacefully are not trends, but foundations of a free society.
Here at 2 If By Sea Tactical we strive to bring you the best experience in the firearms world. As we continue to grow the media arm of 2 If By Sea, make sure you keep tuning in to our Youtube Channel @2ifbyseatactical and right here at “The Patriot’s Almanac” to stay informed on the latest happenings in the firearm world! But we are not lawyers, so this isn't legal guidance.
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