Data / Rankings / Firearm death rate / US states

US states by firearm death rate

Mississippi had the highest firearm death rate of 51 states in 2018, at 22.9 per 100,000 people. Rhode Island had the lowest, at 3.3 per 100,000 people. The median was 13.1 per 100,000 people. Source: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Highest22.9Mississippi
Lowest3.3Rhode Island
Median13.151 states

Map of states, 2018

Alabama: 21.8 per 100,000 peopleAlaska: 21 per 100,000 peopleArizona: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleArkansas: 18.9 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia: 7.5 per 100,000 peopleColorado: 15.2 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut: 4.9 per 100,000 peopleDelaware: 11.6 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia: 16.7 per 100,000 peopleFlorida: 12.9 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia: 15.7 per 100,000 peopleHawaii: 4 per 100,000 peopleIdaho: 16.6 per 100,000 peopleIllinois: 10.9 per 100,000 peopleIndiana: 14.7 per 100,000 peopleIowa: 8.7 per 100,000 peopleKansas: 14.8 per 100,000 peopleKentucky: 16.9 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana: 21.4 per 100,000 peopleMaine: 10.3 per 100,000 peopleMaryland: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts: 3.5 per 100,000 peopleMichigan: 12.9 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota: 7.8 per 100,000 peopleMississippi: 22.9 per 100,000 peopleMissouri: 21.5 per 100,000 peopleMontana: 17.3 per 100,000 peopleNebraska: 9 per 100,000 peopleNevada: 17.9 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire: 10.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey: 4.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico: 20.7 per 100,000 peopleNew York: 4.1 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina: 13.3 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota: 11.5 per 100,000 peopleOhio: 13.1 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleOregon: 11.7 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania: 12.5 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island: 3.3 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina: 17.6 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota: 13.6 per 100,000 peopleTennessee: 17.8 per 100,000 peopleTexas: 12.2 per 100,000 peopleUtah: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleVermont: 12.8 per 100,000 peopleVirginia: 11.8 per 100,000 peopleWashington: 10.4 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia: 18.2 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleWyoming: 21.5 per 100,000 people
  • Under 8.8
  • 8.8 to 12
  • 12 to 13
  • 13 to 16
  • 16 to 18
  • 18 and over
per 100,000 people, 2018. Source: CDC, NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2018

Mississippi: 22.9 per 100,000 peopleMississippi22.9Alabama: 21.8 per 100,000 peopleAlabama21.8Missouri: 21.5 per 100,000 peopleMissouri21.5Wyoming: 21.5 per 100,000 peopleWyoming21.5Louisiana: 21.4 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana21.4Alaska: 21 per 100,000 peopleAlaska21New Mexico: 20.7 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico20.7Arkansas: 18.9 per 100,000 peopleArkansas18.9West Virginia: 18.2 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia18.2Nevada: 17.9 per 100,000 peopleNevada17.9Tennessee: 17.8 per 100,000 peopleTennessee17.8South Carolina: 17.6 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina17.6Montana: 17.3 per 100,000 peopleMontana17.3Kentucky: 16.9 per 100,000 peopleKentucky16.9Oklahoma: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma16.8District of Columbia: 16.7 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia16.7Idaho: 16.6 per 100,000 peopleIdaho16.6Georgia: 15.7 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia15.7Arizona: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleArizona15.3Colorado: 15.2 per 100,000 peopleColorado15.2Kansas: 14.8 per 100,000 peopleKansas14.8Indiana: 14.7 per 100,000 peopleIndiana14.7South Dakota: 13.6 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota13.6North Carolina: 13.3 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina13.3Utah: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleUtah13.2Ohio: 13.1 per 100,000 peopleOhio13.1Florida: 12.9 per 100,000 peopleFlorida12.9Michigan: 12.9 per 100,000 peopleMichigan12.9Vermont: 12.8 per 100,000 peopleVermont12.8Pennsylvania: 12.5 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania12.5Texas: 12.2 per 100,000 peopleTexas12.2Virginia: 11.8 per 100,000 peopleVirginia11.8Maryland: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleMaryland11.7Oregon: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleOregon11.7Delaware: 11.6 per 100,000 peopleDelaware11.6North Dakota: 11.5 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota11.5Illinois: 10.9 per 100,000 peopleIllinois10.9New Hampshire: 10.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire10.8Washington: 10.4 per 100,000 peopleWashington10.4Maine: 10.3 per 100,000 peopleMaine10.3Wisconsin: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin10.1Nebraska: 9 per 100,000 peopleNebraska9Iowa: 8.7 per 100,000 peopleIowa8.7Minnesota: 7.8 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota7.8California: 7.5 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia7.5Connecticut: 4.9 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut4.9New Jersey: 4.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey4.8New York: 4.1 per 100,000 peopleNew York4.1Hawaii: 4 per 100,000 peopleHawaii4Massachusetts: 3.5 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts3.5Rhode Island: 3.3 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island3.3Mississippi: 22.9 per 100,000 peopleMississippi22.9Alabama: 21.8 per 100,000 peopleAlabama21.8Missouri: 21.5 per 100,000 peopleMissouri21.5Wyoming: 21.5 per 100,000 peopleWyoming21.5Louisiana: 21.4 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana21.4Alaska: 21 per 100,000 peopleAlaska21New Mexico: 20.7 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico20.7Arkansas: 18.9 per 100,000 peopleArkansas18.9West Virginia: 18.2 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia18.2Nevada: 17.9 per 100,000 peopleNevada17.9Tennessee: 17.8 per 100,000 peopleTennessee17.8South Carolina: 17.6 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina17.6Montana: 17.3 per 100,000 peopleMontana17.3Kentucky: 16.9 per 100,000 peopleKentucky16.9Oklahoma: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma16.8District of Columbia: 16.7 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia16.7Idaho: 16.6 per 100,000 peopleIdaho16.6Georgia: 15.7 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia15.7Arizona: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleArizona15.3Colorado: 15.2 per 100,000 peopleColorado15.2Kansas: 14.8 per 100,000 peopleKansas14.8Indiana: 14.7 per 100,000 peopleIndiana14.7South Dakota: 13.6 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota13.6North Carolina: 13.3 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina13.3Utah: 13.2 per 100,000 peopleUtah13.2Ohio: 13.1 per 100,000 peopleOhio13.1Florida: 12.9 per 100,000 peopleFlorida12.9Michigan: 12.9 per 100,000 peopleMichigan12.9Vermont: 12.8 per 100,000 peopleVermont12.8Pennsylvania: 12.5 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania12.5Texas: 12.2 per 100,000 peopleTexas12.2Virginia: 11.8 per 100,000 peopleVirginia11.8Maryland: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleMaryland11.7Oregon: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleOregon11.7Delaware: 11.6 per 100,000 peopleDelaware11.6North Dakota: 11.5 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota11.5Illinois: 10.9 per 100,000 peopleIllinois10.9New Hampshire: 10.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire10.8Washington: 10.4 per 100,000 peopleWashington10.4Maine: 10.3 per 100,000 peopleMaine10.3Wisconsin: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin10.1Nebraska: 9 per 100,000 peopleNebraska9Iowa: 8.7 per 100,000 peopleIowa8.7Minnesota: 7.8 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota7.8California: 7.5 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia7.5Connecticut: 4.9 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut4.9New Jersey: 4.8 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey4.8New York: 4.1 per 100,000 peopleNew York4.1Hawaii: 4 per 100,000 peopleHawaii4Massachusetts: 3.5 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts3.5Rhode Island: 3.3 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island3.3
per 100,000 people. Source: CDC, NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2018
per 100,000 people		Change on 2017
1Mississippi22.9+1.4 pts
2Alabama21.8-1.1 pts
3Missouri21.50 pts
3Wyoming21.5+2.7 pts
5Louisiana21.4-0.3 pts
6Alaska21-3.5 pts
7New Mexico20.7+2.2 pts
8Arkansas18.9-1.4 pts
9West Virginia18.2-0.4 pts
10Nevada17.9+1.2 pts
11Tennessee17.8-0.6 pts
12South Carolina17.6-0.1 pts
13Montana17.3-5.2 pts
14Kentucky16.9+0.7 pts
15Oklahoma16.8-0.4 pts
16District of Columbia16.7+3.6 pts
17Idaho16.6+0.2 pts
18Georgia15.7+0.3 pts
19Arizona15.3-0.5 pts
20Colorado15.2+1.8 pts
21Kansas14.8-1.2 pts
22Indiana14.7-0.6 pts
23South Dakota13.6+1.7 pts
24North Carolina13.3-0.4 pts
25Utah13.2-0.8 pts
26Ohio13.1-0.6 pts
27Florida12.9+0.5 pts
27Michigan12.9+1.6 pts
29Vermont12.8+1.1 pts
30Pennsylvania12.50 pts
31Texas12.2-0.2 pts
32Virginia11.8-0.1 pts
33Maryland11.7-0.6 pts
33Oregon11.7-0.4 pts
35Delaware11.6-0.1 pts
36North Dakota11.5-1.7 pts
37Illinois10.9-1.2 pts
38New Hampshire10.8+0.4 pts
39Washington10.4-0.7 pts
40Maine10.3-1.4 pts
41Wisconsin10.1-0.5 pts
42Nebraska9+0.7 pts
43Iowa8.7-0.3 pts
44Minnesota7.8-0.4 pts
45California7.5-0.4 pts
46Connecticut4.9-0.2 pts
47New Jersey4.8-0.5 pts
48New York4.1+0.4 pts
49Hawaii4+1.5 pts
50Massachusetts3.5-0.2 pts
51Rhode Island3.3-0.6 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Deaths from firearm injuries of any intent (suicide, homicide, unintentional, legal intervention or undetermined) per 100,000 residents, age-adjusted to the 2000 US standard population. Deaths are counted by the state of residence. NCHS National Vital Statistics System final death data.

Available for US states and DC. Age adjustment allows states with older or younger populations to be compared; the rate is not the number of deaths divided by the population.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html. Retrieved 2026-10-12. These data are available free from CDC. Use does not imply endorsement by CDC, ATSDR, HHS or the United States Government.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2026). NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate (US states by firearm death rate, 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html

MLA 9

NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate, US states by firearm death rate, 2018. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 18 May 2026, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2018. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2026. NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. US states by firearm death rate, 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2018.

Harvard

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2026) NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate, US states by firearm death rate, 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{centers_us_states_by_firearm_2018,
  author = {{Centers for Disease Control and Prevention}},
  title = {{NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate: US states by firearm death rate, 2018}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2018. Publisher attribution: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html. Retrieved 2026-10-12. These data are available free from CDC. Use does not imply endorsement by CDC, ATSDR, HHS or the United States Government.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
TI  - NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate: US states by firearm death rate, 2018
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/18
PB  - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2018.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/state-stats/deaths/firearms.html. Retrieved 2026-10-12. These data are available free from CDC. Use does not imply endorsement by CDC, ATSDR, HHS or the United States Government.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest firearm death rate?

Mississippi, with 22.9 per 100,000 people in 2018, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Which state has the lowest firearm death rate?

Rhode Island, with 3.3 per 100,000 people in 2018.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NCHS Stats of the States: firearm mortality by state, age-adjusted death rate. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings