Accidental shooting data shows how quickly “rare” incidents become recurring harm. In 2021 alone, 548 unintentional firearm deaths occurred in the United States. More than half of unintentional shootings happen at home, where firearms are often mishandled or left accessible.
Key Takeaways
- Males aged 20-24 made up 12% of unintentional shooting victims in 2021
- In 2021, there were 548 unintentional firearm deaths in the US, accounting for 1.2% of all gun deaths
- US hospitals treated 17,927 nonfatal unintentional shooting injuries in 2021
- 55% of unintentional shootings occurred at home in 2021
- Unintentional firearm deaths increased 17.5% from 2019 to 2020
Accidental shootings remain common, underscoring the need for careful firearm storage and vigilant supervision.
Related reading
01 · Category
Demographics20 stats
01
Males aged 20-24 made up 12% of unintentional shooting victims in 2021
02
Children 0-5 years old: 25% of all pediatric accidental shootings in 2020
03
White males over 65 accounted for 18% of unintentional gun deaths in 2019
04
Urban areas saw 62% of nonfatal accidental shootings in 2021
05
Females comprised 11% of unintentional shooting fatalities in 2020
06
Black Americans: 14% of accidental gun deaths despite 13% population in 2021
07
Ages 15-19: highest rate at 0.8 per 100,000 for unintentional shootings in 2019
08
Rural residents: 38% of unintentional firearm deaths in 2020
09
Hispanic victims: 9% of nonfatal accidental shootings in 2021
10
Adults 25-44: 42% of all unintentional gun injuries in 2019
11
Children 6-12: 15% of pediatric accidental shootings in 2020
12
Asian Americans: under 2% of unintentional shooting victims in 2021
13
Males 45-64: 25% of accidental gun fatalities in 2019
14
Suburban areas: 28% of nonfatal unintentional shootings in 2020
15
Native Americans: 3% of unintentional gun deaths in 2021
16
Teens 13-17: 22% of youth accidental injuries in 2019
17
Elderly over 75: 12% of unintentional shooting deaths in 2020
18
White victims: 72% of accidental gun fatalities in 2021
19
Black males under 25: 8% of nonfatal unintentional shootings in 2019
20
Females aged 0-14: 4% of pediatric accidental shootings in 2020
Interpretation
Demographics Interpretation
The data paints a grim portrait of carelessness, revealing that accidental gun violence is a tragically equal-opportunity menace, sparing no demographic but disproportionately terrorizing the very young, the inexperienced, and the complacent in their own homes.
02 · Category
Fatalities30 stats
01
In 2021, there were 548 unintentional firearm deaths in the US, accounting for 1.2% of all gun deaths
02
In 2020, unintentional firearm fatalities numbered 451, a 22% increase from 2019
03
US saw 569 accidental gun deaths in 2019 per CDC data
04
2022 recorded 582 unintentional shooting deaths nationwide
05
From 2015-2019, average annual unintentional firearm deaths were 474
06
Texas reported 62 accidental gun deaths in 2021
07
Florida had 48 unintentional firearm fatalities in 2020
08
California logged 29 accidental shooting deaths in 2021
09
In 2018, 403 unintentional gun deaths occurred, down from 505 in 2015
10
Males accounted for 89% of 2021's 548 unintentional firearm deaths
11
Children under 18 comprised 8% of unintentional gun deaths in 2020 (36 cases)
12
2022's accidental gun deaths rose 5% to 582 per GVA
13
Pennsylvania saw 35 unintentional firearm deaths in 2021
14
Ohio reported 28 accidental shooting deaths in 2020
15
Michigan had 22 unintentional gun fatalities in 2019
16
Nationwide, 1.4 per 100,000 population died from unintentional shootings in 2021
17
2017 saw 428 accidental firearm deaths
18
Georgia recorded 41 unintentional gun deaths in 2021
19
North Carolina had 37 accidental shooting fatalities in 2020
20
Arizona logged 26 unintentional firearm deaths in 2021
21
2016 unintentional gun deaths totaled 486
22
Illinois reported 19 accidental shooting deaths in 2021
23
Tennessee had 29 unintentional firearm fatalities in 2020
24
Alabama saw 24 accidental gun deaths in 2019
25
Missouri recorded 25 unintentional shooting deaths in 2021
26
Kentucky had 22 accidental firearm deaths in 2020
27
Indiana reported 18 unintentional gun fatalities in 2019
28
Wisconsin logged 14 accidental shooting deaths in 2021
29
Colorado had 16 unintentional firearm deaths in 2020
30
In 2021, 0.16 per 100,000 children died from unintentional shootings
Interpretation
Fatalities Interpretation
The tragic and stubbornly persistent toll of "accidents"—a predictable annual harvest of hundreds of lives cut short, predominantly men, and far too many children—proves that when it comes to firearms, the word 'unintentional' is often the only thing that's careless about these entirely preventable deaths.
03 · Category
Non-Fatal Injuries27 stats
01
US hospitals treated 17,927 nonfatal unintentional shooting injuries in 2021
02
2020 saw 14,205 emergency department visits for accidental gun injuries
03
In 2019, 18,346 nonfatal unintentional firearm injuries occurred
04
GVA tracked 2,841 unintentional shooting injuries in 2022
05
Children under 14 had 1,200 nonfatal accidental gun injuries in 2021
06
Males represented 83% of 17,927 nonfatal unintentional shooting cases in 2021
07
Texas reported 1,245 ED visits for accidental gun injuries in 2020
08
Florida logged 892 nonfatal unintentional shooting injuries in 2021
09
California had 745 accidental firearm injury ED visits in 2020
10
2018 nonfatal unintentional gun injuries totaled 16,542
11
Pennsylvania saw 678 nonfatal accidental shooting injuries in 2021
12
Ohio reported 512 ED visits for unintentional gun injuries in 2020
13
Michigan had 456 nonfatal accidental firearm injuries in 2019
14
Rate of nonfatal unintentional shootings was 5.4 per 100,000 in 2021
15
2017 recorded 15,789 nonfatal gun injury ED visits from accidents
16
Georgia had 623 unintentional shooting injuries in 2021
17
North Carolina logged 589 nonfatal accidental gun injuries in 2020
18
Arizona reported 412 ED visits for unintentional shootings in 2021
19
2016 nonfatal unintentional firearm injuries: 17,123 cases
20
Illinois saw 345 accidental gun injury visits in 2021
21
Tennessee had 498 nonfatal unintentional shootings in 2020
22
Alabama reported 367 ED visits for accidental gun injuries in 2019
23
Missouri logged 389 nonfatal shooting injuries in 2021
24
Kentucky had 312 accidental firearm injuries in 2020
25
Indiana reported 278 nonfatal unintentional gun injuries in 2019
26
Wisconsin saw 245 ED visits for accidental shootings in 2021
27
Colorado had 267 unintentional gun injury cases in 2020
Interpretation
Non-Fatal Injuries Interpretation
These statistics prove that America has accidentally made treating bullet wounds a core part of its healthcare curriculum.
More related reading
04 · Category
Scenarios25 stats
01
55% of unintentional shootings occurred at home in 2021
02
28% of accidental shootings involved handguns in 2020
03
Dropped or mishandled guns caused 41% of unintentional injuries in 2019
04
19% of accidental shootings happened during cleaning or maintenance in 2021
05
Hunting accidents: 12% of rural unintentional gun deaths in 2020
06
Self-inflicted accidental shootings: 35% of nonfatal cases in 2019
07
22% involved unsecured firearms accessible to children in 2021
08
Vehicle-related accidental shootings: 8% of incidents in 2020
09
15% occurred at retail locations or gun ranges in 2019
10
Playing with gun: 27% of child unintentional shootings in 2021
11
Holster malfunctions caused 9% of law enforcement accidental shootings in 2020
12
31% of accidents involved rifles or shotguns in rural areas 2019
13
Trigger pulled unintentionally: 52% of all accidental discharges in 2021
14
14% happened during target practice in 2020
15
Bedroom storage led to 18% of home accidental shootings in 2019
16
7% involved multiple shooters in group settings 2021
17
Workplace accidental shootings: 3% of total incidents in 2020
18
24% from guns left loaded and unattended in 2019
19
School-related unintentional shootings: 1.2% of youth cases in 2021
20
11% during firearm transfers or showing off in 2020
21
Public streets: 16% of urban accidental shootings in 2019
22
6% from ricochet or stray bullets in hunting 2021
23
Alcohol involved in 13% of adult accidental shootings 2020
24
29% self-inflicted during holstering in 2019
25
Residential yards: 9% of home-related accidents 2021
Interpretation
Scenarios Interpretation
The grim arithmetic of carelessness is written in these numbers: over half of accidents happen at home, often with mishandled or unsecured guns, proving the most dangerous weapon is the one treated like a harmless household object.
05 · Category
Trends24 stats
01
Unintentional firearm deaths increased 17.5% from 2019 to 2020
02
Nonfatal unintentional shootings rose 12% from 2018 to 2021
03
Child accidental shootings up 30% during COVID-19 in 2020
04
Annual rate of unintentional gun deaths stable at 0.14-0.16 per 100k 2015-2021
05
GVA unintentional incidents surged 25% from 2019 to 2022
06
Post-2015, accidental gun deaths averaged 460 yearly
07
Injury ED visits peaked at 18,346 in 2019 before dropping in 2020
08
Safe storage laws correlated with 8% drop in youth accidents 2010-2020
09
Firearm ownership rise linked to 15% increase in accidents 2016-2021
10
Southern states saw 22% rise in unintentional shootings 2015-2020
11
National unintentional gun death rate declined 25% from 1999-2015
12
2021-2022: 5% uptick in accidental fatalities per GVA
13
Child access prevention laws reduced incidents by 23% in adopting states
14
ED visits for unintentional shootings down 23% from 2016 peak in 2020
15
Midwest accidental injuries stable 2018-2021 at ~1,200 annually
16
Hispanic unintentional death rates doubled 2010-2020
17
Gun production boom 2020 correlated with 18% accident spike
18
States without safe storage laws: 2x higher child shooting rates 2015-2021
19
Urban unintentional shootings declined 10% 2015-2020
20
Elderly accidental rates up 14% with pandemic isolation 2020-2021
21
Overall gun violence down but unintentional up 8% since 2014
22
Northeast saw lowest rates, steady at 0.1 per 100k 2016-2021
23
Permitless carry states: 19% higher accident rates 2010-2020
24
Pediatric hospital admissions for accidental shootings rose 50% 2019-2021
Interpretation
Trends Interpretation
It seems we've collectively decided that teaching toddlers trigger discipline is easier than storing a gun safely, as statistics show a grim comedy where safety laws work, ownership surges don't, and our most vulnerable keep paying the price.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Christopher Morgan. (2026, February 13). Accidental Shooting Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/accidental-shooting-statistics
MLA
Christopher Morgan. "Accidental Shooting Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/accidental-shooting-statistics.
Chicago
Christopher Morgan. 2026. "Accidental Shooting Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/accidental-shooting-statistics.
Sources & references
32 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level