Citation(s) from the GunPolicy.org literature library

Print Close

GunPolicy.org. 2021 ‘Calculated and Estimated Firearm Licence and Registration Data.’ National Firearm Totals. Sydney: GunPolicy.org, Sydney School of Public Health, The University of Sydney. 26 April

Relevant contents

Each Australian state and territory publishes its own firearm data either comprehensively, reluctantly, or not at all. Official statistics on national firearm licensing and registration are rarely revealed due to database fragmentation, inconsistency and institutional resistance to transparency.

GunPolicy.org is the only organisation which attempts to publicly reveal firearm licensing and registration data for every jurisdiction. We publish found and requested official figures, along with annual estimates calculated from surrounding years, for each of Australia's nine jurisdictions, plus national totals in these categories:

- Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit)
- Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit)
- Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
- Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
- Number of Registered Firearms
- Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population

Each annual national statistic is the aggregate of all Australian states and territories for that year and category. When a jurisdiction does not publish an official figure in a given year or category, GunPolicy.org calculates an estimate, rounded to the nearest hundred, that is modelled on 1) the most recently reported statistic, 2) the trend of reported statistics before and after that year, and 3) population growth. Estimated statistics are denoted with an asterisk (*).

For the category 'Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit)' and its corresponding rate, note that the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission estimates that there are 260,000 unregistered firearms in Australia.1 GunPolicy.org uses the sum of state registration data and 260,000 for this category.

The following list presents the national-aggregate and state-specific data used to compile these estimates.

++++

AUSTRALIA

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 3,778,025
2019: 3,754,166
2018: 3,740,894
2017: 3,659,772
2016: 3,548,761
2015: 3,426,363
2014: 3,258,445

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit)
2020: 14.83
2019: 14.95
2018: 15.12
2017: 15.02
2016: 14.80
2015: 14.51
2014: 13.99

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 868,110
2019: 864,214
2018: 873,432
2017: 869,077
2016: 848,219
2015: 823,360
2014: 781,524

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 3.41
2019: 3.44
2018: 3.53
2017: 3.57
2016: 3.54
2015: 3.49
2014: 3.36

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 3,518,025
2019: 3,494,166
2018: 3,480,894
2017: 3,399,772
2016: 3,288,761
2015: 3,166,363
2014: 2,998,445

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 13.81
2019: 13.91
2018: 14.07
2017: 13.95
2016: 13.71
2015: 13.41
2014: 12.87

Mid-year Population, Australia

2020: 25,467,706
2019: 25,113,987
2018: 24,748,006
2017: 24,370,179
2016: 23,980,152
2015: 23,618,255
2014: 23,292,143
 
++++
 
AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY (ACT)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 21,450*
2019: 21,340*
2018: 21,230*
2017: 20,8642 3 4 5
2016: 21,236
2015: 21,120
2014: 20,479

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 4.98*
2019: 5.01*
2018: 5.05*
2017: 5.062 6 7 5
2016: 5.27
2015: 5.34
2014: 5.27

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 6,600*
2019: 6,500*
2018: 6,400*
2017: 6,300*
2016: 6,1228
2015: 6,0839
2014: 5,88610 9

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 1.53*
2019: 1.52*
2018: 1.52*
2017: 1.53*
2016: 1.526
2015: 1.54
2014: 1.51

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 19,500*
2019: 19,400*
2018: 19,300*
2017: 18,9672
2016: 19,3058
2015: 19,2009
2014: 18,61710 9

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 4.52*
2019: 4.55*
2018: 4.59*
2017: 4.606
2016: 4.79
2015: 4.85
2014: 4.79

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 1,950*
2019: 1,940*
2018: 1,930*
2017: 1,8972 3 11 5
2016: 1,931
2015: 1,920
2014: 1,862

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 0.45
2019: 0.46
2018: 0.46
2017: 0.466
2016: 0.48
2015: 0.49
2014: 0.48

Mid-year Population, ACT

2020: 431,380
2019: 426,285
2018: 420,379
2017: 412,025
2016: 403,104
2015: 395,813
2014: 388,799

++++

NEW SOUTH WALES (NSW)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 1,125,01412 4 5
2019: 1,108,565
2018: 1,098,952
2017: 1,062,846
2016: 1,012,045
2015: 959,371
2014: 902,110

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 13.7713 7 5
2019: 13.71
2018: 13.77
2017: 13.51
2016: 13.09
2015: 12.60
2014: 12.01

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 241,18314
2019: 239,96315 16
2018: 236,95117
2017: 234,951
2016: 229,11217 18
2015: 215,46219
2014: 199,380

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 2.9513
2019: 2.97
2018: 2.97
2017: 2.99
2016: 2.96
2015: 2.83
2014: 2.66

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 1,022,74020
2019: 1,007,78621 16
2018: 999,04717
2017: 966,224
2016: 920,04117 18 22
2015: 872,155
2014: 820,100*

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 12.5213
2019: 12.46
2018: 12.52
2017: 12.28
2016: 11.90
2015: 11.45
2014: 10.92

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 102,27412 11 5
2019: 100,799
2018: 99,905
2017: 96,622
2016: 92,004
2015: 87,216
2014: 82,010

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 1.2513
2019: 1.25
2018: 1.25
2017: 1.23
2016: 1.19
2015: 1.15
2014: 1.09

Mid-year Population, NSW

2020: 8,167,532
2019: 8,087,379
2018: 7,980,168
2017: 7,867,936
2016: 7,732,858
2015: 7,616,168
2014: 7,508,353

++++

NORTHERN TERRITORY (NT)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 55,66023 4 5
2019: 56,100
2018: 59,070*
2017: 59,861
2016: 60,940*
2015: 62,370*
2014: 63,584

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 22.6124 7 5
2019: 22.79
2018: 23.91*
2017: 24.18
2016: 24.80*
2015: 25.49*
2014: 26.18

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 15,70025
2019: 15,80026
2018: 15,800*
2017: 15,88127
2016: 14,900*
2015: 14,000*
2014: 13,00028

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 6.3824
2019: 6.42
2018: 6.41*
2017: 6.42
2016: 6.06*
2015: 5.72*
2014: 5.35

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 50,60025
2019: 51,00026
2018: 53,700*
2017: 54,51927
2016: 55,400*
2015: 56,650*
2014: 57,80428

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 20.5624
2019: 20.72
2018: 21.74*
2017: 21.99
2016: 22.55*
2015: 23.17*
2014: 23.80

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 5,06023 11 5
2019: 5,100
2018: 5,370
2017: 5,442
2016: 5,540
2015: 5,670
2014: 5,780

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 2.06
2019: 2.07
2018: 2.17
2017: 2.20
2016: 2.25
2015: 2.32
2014: 2.38

Mid-year Population

2020: 246,143
2019: 246,143
2018: 247,058
2017: 247,517
2016: 245,678
2015: 244,692
2014: 242,894

++++

QUEENSLAND (Qld)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 913,000*
2019: 912,71729 4 5
2018: 928,542
2017: 913,395
2016: 871,599
2015: 831,485
2014: 758,469

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 17.64*
2019: 17.92
2018: 18.54
2017: 18.54
2016: 17.99
2015: 17.40
2014: 16.07

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 186,000*
2019: 185,74230
2018: 196,13631
2017: 195,96332
2016: 184,368{q13187
2015: 179,184
2014: 171,71333 34 35

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 3.59*
2019: 3.6536
2018: 3.92
2017: 3.98
2016: 3.81
2015: 3.75
2014: 3.64

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 830,000*
2019: 829,74330
2018: 844,12937 31
2017: 830,35932
2016: 792,36338
2015: 755,895
2014: 689,51738 34 35

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 16.03*
2019: 16.2936
2018: 16.85
2017: 16.85
2016: 16.35
2015: 15.82
2014: 14.61

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 83,000
2019: 82,97429 11 5
2018: 84,413
2017: 83,036
2016: 79,236
2015: 75,590
2014: 68,952

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 1.60
2019: 1.6336
2018: 1.69
2017: 1.69
2016: 1.64
2015: 1.58
2014: 1.46

Mid-year Population, Qld

2020: 5,176,186
2019: 5,093,884
2018: 5,009,424
2017: 4,927,629
2016: 4,845,152
2015: 4,777,692
2014: 4,719,653

++++

SOUTH AUSTRALIA (SA)
 
Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 343,35539 4 5
2019: 343,217
2018: 340,066
2017: 337,724
2016: 328,736
2015: 323,021
2014: 318,387

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 19.3939 4 5
2019: 19.58
2018: 19.58
2017: 19.59
2016: 19.19
2015: 18.99
2014: 18.87

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 64,11540
2019: 64,526
2018: 64,79041
2017: 65,292
2016: 65,35142
2015: 65,282
2014: 65,161

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 3.6243
2019: 3.68
2018: 3.73
2017: 3.79
2016: 3.82
2015: 3.84
2014: 3.86

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 312,14140
2019: 312,015
2018: 309,15141
2017: 307,022
2016: 298,85142
2015: 293,655
2014: 289,443

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 17.6343
2019: 17.80
2018: 17.80
2017: 17.81
2016: 17.45
2015: 17.27
2014: 17.16

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 31,21439 11 5
2019: 31,202
2018: 30,915
2017: 30,702
2016: 29,885
2015: 29,366
2014: 28,944

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 1.7643
2019: 1.78
2018: 1.78
2017: 1.78
2016: 1.74
2015: 1.73
2014: 1.72

Mid-year Population, SA

2020: 1,770,375
2019: 1,752,681
2018: 1,736,527
2017: 1,723,923
2016: 1,712,843
2015: 1,700,668
2014: 1,686,945

++++

TASMANIA (Tas.)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 147,400*
2019: 146,630*
2018: 146,38344 4 5
2017: 143,051
2016: 142,815
2015: 141,206
2014: 141,143

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 27.26*
2019: 27.43*
2018: 27.7145
2017: 27.38
2016: 27.60
2015: 27.41
2014: 27.48

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 36,500*
2019: 36,600*
2018: 36,63146
2017: 36,613
2016: 37,68447
2015: 37,232
2014: 37,04848

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 6.75*
2019: 6.85*
2018: 6.9345
2017: 7.01
2016: 7.28
2015: 7.23
2014: 7.21

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 134,000*
2019: 133,300*
2018: 133,07546
2017: 130,0462
2016: 129,83247 49
2015: 128,369
2014: 128,31248

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 24.78*
2019: 24.94*
2018: 25.1945
2017: 24.89
2016: 25.09
2015: 24.92
2014: 24.98

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 13,400
2019: 13,330
2018: 13,30844 11 5
2017: 13,005
2016: 12,983
2015: 12,837
2014: 12,831

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 2.48
2019: 2.49
2018: 2.5245
2017: 2.49
2016: 2.51
2015: 2.49
2014: 2.50

Mid-year Population

2020: 540,780
2019: 534,575
2018: 528,298
2017: 522,410
2016: 517,514
2015: 515,117
2014: 513,621

++++

VICTORIA (Vic.)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 950,40250 4 5
2019: 941,657
2018: 915,369
2017: 887,809
2016: 872,130
2015: 844,034
2014: 801,899

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)
2020: 14.1951 7 5
2019: 14.27
2018: 14.17
2017: 14.04
2016: 14.13
2015: 14.02
2014: 13.60

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 228,21552
2019: 226,93453
2018: 224,61854
2017: 222,39155
2016: 219,00556
2015: 214,93657 58
2014: 198,36858

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 3.4151
2019: 3.44
2018: 3.48
2017: 3.52
2016: 3.55
2015: 3.57
2014: 3.37

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 864,00252
2019: 856,05253
2018: 832,15454
2017: 807,09955
2016: 792,84556
2015: 767,30457 58
2014: 728,99958

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 12.9051
2019: 12.98
2018: 12.88
2017: 12.77
2016: 12.84
2015: 12.74
2014: 12.37

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 86,40050 11 5
2019: 85,605
2018: 83,215
2017: 80,710
2016: 79,285
2015: 76,730
2014: 72,900

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 1.2951
2019: 1.30
2018: 1.29
2017: 1.28
2016: 1.28
2015: 1.27
2014: 1.24

Mid-year Population, Vic.

2020: 6,696,670
2019: 6,596,880
2018: 6,462,019
2017: 6,321,606
2016: 6,173,172
2015: 6,022,322
2014: 5,894,917

++++

WESTERN AUSTRALIA (WA)

Number of Privately Owned Firearms (licit and illicit*)
2020: 313,500*
2019: 313,34259 7 5
2018: 319,360
2017: 314,200
2016: 308,136
2015: 300,449
2014: 292,190

Rate of Civilian Firearm Possession per 100 Population (licit and illicit*)

2020: 11.77*
2019: 11.9460 7 5
2018: 12.31
2017: 12.21
2016: 12.06
2015: 11.83
2014: 11.61

Number of Licensed Firearm Owners
2020: 89,800*
2019: 88,14161
2018: 92,082
2017: 91,720
2016: 91,657
2015: 91,221
2014: 90,968

Rate of Licensed Firearm Owners per 100 Population
2020: 3.37*
2019: 3.3660
2018: 3.55
2017: 3.56
2016: 3.59
2015: 3.59
2014: 3.61

Number of Registered Firearms
2020: 285,000*
2019: 284,85661
2018: 290,327
2017: 285,636
2016: 280,124
2015: 273,135
2014: 265,627

Rate of Registered Firearms per 100 Population
2020: 10.70*
2019: 10.8660
2018: 11.19
2017: 11.10
2016: 10.96
2015: 10.75
2014: 10.55

Estimated Number of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms
2020: 28,500
2019: 28,84659 11 5
2018: 29,033
2017: 28,564
2016: 28,012
2015: 27,314
2014: 26,563

Estimated Rate of Unregistered and Illicit Firearms per 100 Population

2020: 1.07
2019: 1.0960
2018: 1.12
2017: 1.11
2016: 1.10
2015: 1.08
2014: 1.06

Mid-year Population, WA

2020: 2,663,561
2019: 2,623,259
2018: 2,594,181
2017: 2,574,193
2016: 2,555,978
2015: 2,540,672
2014: 2,517,608

ENDS

ID: Q14217

As many publishers change their links and archive their pages, the full-text version of this article may no longer be available from the original link. In this case, please go to the publisher's web site or use a search engine.

Array
(
    [type] => 8
    [message] => Trying to get property 'websource' of non-object
    [file] => /home/gpo/public_html/components/com_gpo/helpers/citation.php
    [line] => 153
)