Tools and Data from the Gun Policy in America Initiative

How Do State Laws Affect Firearm Deaths?

Explore how changes in gun policy might affect firearm death rates for each state.

How Have Firearm Death Rates Changed Over Time?

Explore how rates of firearm deaths have changed in the past four decades and how the pattern differs among states.

How Do Firearm Death Rates Differ Across States and Population Groups?

Explore firearm mortality rates in each state by gender, race, ethnicity, urbanicity, or age.

Firearm Injury Hospitalizations in America

To address a gap in the available data on firearm injuries, RAND researchers have developed a longitudinal database of state-level estimates of hospitalizations due to firearm injury. Use this visualization to see rates of firearm injuries in your state from 2000 to 2016, and how trends in firearm injuries differ between states.

These Three Firearm Restrictions Could Help Reduce Gun Deaths in Your State

States that put into effect the most restrictive combination of three common gun policies—regulating the way people use, carry and store their firearms—could see a small but meaningful reduction of firearm deaths.

Gun Ownership in America

Information about how many Americans own guns, and how this varies over time and across the United States, is important for understanding the effects of gun laws on firearm ownership and other outcomes. Use this tool to explore the estimated household gun ownership rate by state from 1980 to 2016.

State Firearm Law Navigator

Research on the effects of gun laws requires good data on when and where different types of laws have been implemented. The State Firearm Law Navigator shows which states since 1979 have enacted 20 classes of gun laws.

Gun Policy Expert-Opinion Tool

Explore how experts with diverse views think changes in gun policies might affect outcomes, such as violent crime, suicide, and participation in hunting and sport shooting.

The RAND State Firearm Law Database

As part of the Gun Policy in America initiative, RAND developed a longitudinal data set of state and District of Columbia firearm laws. This updated version includes laws from 1979 to January 2024.

Mar 10, 2025

Inpatient Hospitalizations for Firearm Injury: Estimating State-Level Rates from 2000 to 2016

The lack of reliable, state-level data on firearm injuries is a challenge for gun policy researchers. As part of the Gun Policy in America initiative, RAND researchers developed a publicly available longitudinal database of state-level estimates of inpatient hospitalizations that occur as a result of firearm injury.

Apr 27, 2021

State-Level Estimates of Household Firearm Ownership

Measures of firearm ownership are critical to understanding how gun ownership may affect crime rates or other outcomes, or may be affected by gun policies. As part of the Gun Policy in America initiative, RAND researchers developed annual, state-level estimates of household firearm ownership.

Apr 22, 2020