Data / Rankings / Firearm death rate / US states

US states by firearm death rate

Mississippi had the highest firearm death rate of 51 states in 2022, at 29.6 per 100,000 people. Rhode Island had the lowest, at 3.1 per 100,000 people. The median was 15.6 per 100,000 people. Source: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest29.6Mississippi
Lowest3.1Rhode Island
Median15.651 states

Map of states, 2022

Alabama: 25.5 per 100,000 peopleAlaska: 22.4 per 100,000 peopleArizona: 20.1 per 100,000 peopleArkansas: 21.9 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia: 8.6 per 100,000 peopleColorado: 17.1 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut: 6.9 per 100,000 peopleDelaware: 11.9 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia: 21.4 per 100,000 peopleFlorida: 14 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia: 19.7 per 100,000 peopleHawaii: 4.5 per 100,000 peopleIdaho: 17 per 100,000 peopleIllinois: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleIndiana: 17.4 per 100,000 peopleIowa: 11.2 per 100,000 peopleKansas: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleKentucky: 18.8 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana: 28.2 per 100,000 peopleMaine: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleMaryland: 13.6 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts: 3.7 per 100,000 peopleMichigan: 15 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota: 9.6 per 100,000 peopleMississippi: 29.6 per 100,000 peopleMissouri: 24.2 per 100,000 peopleMontana: 23.9 per 100,000 peopleNebraska: 12.2 per 100,000 peopleNevada: 18.9 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey: 5 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico: 27.3 per 100,000 peopleNew York: 5.3 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota: 16.4 per 100,000 peopleOhio: 15.6 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma: 19.8 per 100,000 peopleOregon: 14.4 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania: 14.7 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island: 3.1 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina: 20.8 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota: 15.7 per 100,000 peopleTennessee: 20.5 per 100,000 peopleTexas: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleUtah: 13.7 per 100,000 peopleVermont: 12 per 100,000 peopleVirginia: 14.9 per 100,000 peopleWashington: 12.4 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia: 16.2 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin: 14 per 100,000 peopleWyoming: 20.4 per 100,000 people
  • Under 10
  • 10 to 14
  • 14 to 16
  • 16 to 18
  • 18 to 21
  • 21 and over
per 100,000 people, 2022. 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, 2022

Mississippi: 29.6 per 100,000 peopleMississippi29.6Louisiana: 28.2 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana28.2New Mexico: 27.3 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico27.3Alabama: 25.5 per 100,000 peopleAlabama25.5Missouri: 24.2 per 100,000 peopleMissouri24.2Montana: 23.9 per 100,000 peopleMontana23.9Alaska: 22.4 per 100,000 peopleAlaska22.4Arkansas: 21.9 per 100,000 peopleArkansas21.9District of Columbia: 21.4 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia21.4South Carolina: 20.8 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina20.8Tennessee: 20.5 per 100,000 peopleTennessee20.5Wyoming: 20.4 per 100,000 peopleWyoming20.4Arizona: 20.1 per 100,000 peopleArizona20.1Oklahoma: 19.8 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma19.8Georgia: 19.7 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia19.7Nevada: 18.9 per 100,000 peopleNevada18.9Kentucky: 18.8 per 100,000 peopleKentucky18.8Indiana: 17.4 per 100,000 peopleIndiana17.4Colorado: 17.1 per 100,000 peopleColorado17.1Idaho: 17 per 100,000 peopleIdaho17Kansas: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleKansas16.8North Carolina: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina16.8North Dakota: 16.4 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota16.4West Virginia: 16.2 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia16.2South Dakota: 15.7 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota15.7Ohio: 15.6 per 100,000 peopleOhio15.6Texas: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleTexas15.3Michigan: 15 per 100,000 peopleMichigan15Virginia: 14.9 per 100,000 peopleVirginia14.9Pennsylvania: 14.7 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania14.7Illinois: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleIllinois14.4Oregon: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleOregon14.4Florida: 14 per 100,000 peopleFlorida14Wisconsin: 14 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin14Utah: 13.7 per 100,000 peopleUtah13.7Maryland: 13.6 per 100,000 peopleMaryland13.6Washington: 12.4 per 100,000 peopleWashington12.4Nebraska: 12.2 per 100,000 peopleNebraska12.2Vermont: 12 per 100,000 peopleVermont12Delaware: 11.9 per 100,000 peopleDelaware11.9Maine: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleMaine11.7Iowa: 11.2 per 100,000 peopleIowa11.2New Hampshire: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire10.1Minnesota: 9.6 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota9.6California: 8.6 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia8.6Connecticut: 6.9 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut6.9New York: 5.3 per 100,000 peopleNew York5.3New Jersey: 5 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey5Hawaii: 4.5 per 100,000 peopleHawaii4.5Massachusetts: 3.7 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts3.7Rhode Island: 3.1 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island3.1Mississippi: 29.6 per 100,000 peopleMississippi29.6Louisiana: 28.2 per 100,000 peopleLouisiana28.2New Mexico: 27.3 per 100,000 peopleNew Mexico27.3Alabama: 25.5 per 100,000 peopleAlabama25.5Missouri: 24.2 per 100,000 peopleMissouri24.2Montana: 23.9 per 100,000 peopleMontana23.9Alaska: 22.4 per 100,000 peopleAlaska22.4Arkansas: 21.9 per 100,000 peopleArkansas21.9District of Columbia: 21.4 per 100,000 peopleDistrict of Columbia21.4South Carolina: 20.8 per 100,000 peopleSouth Carolina20.8Tennessee: 20.5 per 100,000 peopleTennessee20.5Wyoming: 20.4 per 100,000 peopleWyoming20.4Arizona: 20.1 per 100,000 peopleArizona20.1Oklahoma: 19.8 per 100,000 peopleOklahoma19.8Georgia: 19.7 per 100,000 peopleGeorgia19.7Nevada: 18.9 per 100,000 peopleNevada18.9Kentucky: 18.8 per 100,000 peopleKentucky18.8Indiana: 17.4 per 100,000 peopleIndiana17.4Colorado: 17.1 per 100,000 peopleColorado17.1Idaho: 17 per 100,000 peopleIdaho17Kansas: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleKansas16.8North Carolina: 16.8 per 100,000 peopleNorth Carolina16.8North Dakota: 16.4 per 100,000 peopleNorth Dakota16.4West Virginia: 16.2 per 100,000 peopleWest Virginia16.2South Dakota: 15.7 per 100,000 peopleSouth Dakota15.7Ohio: 15.6 per 100,000 peopleOhio15.6Texas: 15.3 per 100,000 peopleTexas15.3Michigan: 15 per 100,000 peopleMichigan15Virginia: 14.9 per 100,000 peopleVirginia14.9Pennsylvania: 14.7 per 100,000 peoplePennsylvania14.7Illinois: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleIllinois14.4Oregon: 14.4 per 100,000 peopleOregon14.4Florida: 14 per 100,000 peopleFlorida14Wisconsin: 14 per 100,000 peopleWisconsin14Utah: 13.7 per 100,000 peopleUtah13.7Maryland: 13.6 per 100,000 peopleMaryland13.6Washington: 12.4 per 100,000 peopleWashington12.4Nebraska: 12.2 per 100,000 peopleNebraska12.2Vermont: 12 per 100,000 peopleVermont12Delaware: 11.9 per 100,000 peopleDelaware11.9Maine: 11.7 per 100,000 peopleMaine11.7Iowa: 11.2 per 100,000 peopleIowa11.2New Hampshire: 10.1 per 100,000 peopleNew Hampshire10.1Minnesota: 9.6 per 100,000 peopleMinnesota9.6California: 8.6 per 100,000 peopleCalifornia8.6Connecticut: 6.9 per 100,000 peopleConnecticut6.9New York: 5.3 per 100,000 peopleNew York5.3New Jersey: 5 per 100,000 peopleNew Jersey5Hawaii: 4.5 per 100,000 peopleHawaii4.5Massachusetts: 3.7 per 100,000 peopleMassachusetts3.7Rhode Island: 3.1 per 100,000 peopleRhode Island3.1
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

RankStates2022
per 100,000 people		Change on 2021
1Mississippi29.6-4.3 pts
2Louisiana28.2-0.9 pts
3New Mexico27.3-0.5 pts
4Alabama25.5-0.9 pts
5Missouri24.2+1 pts
6Montana23.9-1.2 pts
7Alaska22.4-2.8 pts
8Arkansas21.9-1.4 pts
9District of Columbia21.4-3 pts
10South Carolina20.8-1.6 pts
11Tennessee20.5-2.3 pts
12Wyoming20.4-5.7 pts
13Arizona20.1+1.8 pts
14Oklahoma19.8-1.4 pts
15Georgia19.7-0.6 pts
16Nevada18.9-0.9 pts
17Kentucky18.8-2.3 pts
18Indiana17.4-1 pts
19Colorado17.1-0.7 pts
20Idaho17+0.7 pts
21Kansas16.8-0.5 pts
21North Carolina16.8-0.5 pts
23North Dakota16.4-0.4 pts
24West Virginia16.2-1.1 pts
25South Dakota15.7+1.4 pts
26Ohio15.6-0.9 pts
27Texas15.3-0.3 pts
28Michigan15-0.4 pts
29Virginia14.9+0.6 pts
30Pennsylvania14.7-0.1 pts
31Illinois14.4-1.7 pts
31Oregon14.4-0.5 pts
33Florida14-0.1 pts
33Wisconsin14+0.5 pts
35Utah13.7-0.2 pts
36Maryland13.6-1.6 pts
37Washington12.4+1.2 pts
38Nebraska12.2+1.9 pts
39Vermont12+0.1 pts
40Delaware11.9-4.7 pts
41Maine11.7-0.9 pts
42Iowa11.20 pts
43New Hampshire10.1+1.8 pts
44Minnesota9.6-0.4 pts
45California8.6-0.4 pts
46Connecticut6.9+0.2 pts
47New York5.3-0.1 pts
48New Jersey5-0.2 pts
49Hawaii4.5-0.3 pts
50Massachusetts3.7+0.3 pts
51Rhode Island3.1-2.5 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, 2022) [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, 2022. 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=2022. 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, 2022. 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=2022.

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, 2022 [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=2022 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{centers_us_states_by_firearm_2022,
  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, 2022}},
  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=2022. 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, 2022
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=2022
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/firearm-death-rate/us-states?period=2022.
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  -
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank US states by firearm death rate using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"firearm_death_rate","level":"region","within":"United States","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=firearm_death_rate&level=region&within=United%20States&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which state has the highest firearm death rate?

Mississippi, with 29.6 per 100,000 people in 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Which state has the lowest firearm death rate?

Rhode Island, with 3.1 per 100,000 people in 2022.

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