NICS checks for firearm purchases top 613,000 for Black Friday week
The FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) completed 613,380 background checks related to firearms for the week leading up to and including Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the year, according to NSSF.
That figure is down from 2023’s total of 680,671 for the same time period. The 2024 total is a 9.8% decrease from the 2023 figure.
FBI NICS completed 169,906 background checks on Black Friday alone. The figure approximates firearm sales at retail on that day, although it also includes background checks for other purposes related to firearms, such as approvals for concealed-carry permits. NSSF later this week will release its adjusted NICS figures for November, reflecting only those background checks related to the sale of a firearm at retail.
NSSF has worked with firearm retailers to spread out special sales offers to customers throughout the week leading up to Black Friday so as not to overwhelm FBI NICS on a single day, which can result in longer-than-normal wait times.
“The background checks reported by the FBI are in keeping with the trends NSSF has seen throughout the year. While the overall trends are still coming off the peaks experienced in recent years, firearm sales remain consistently strong, with over a million per month for more than five years running,” said Joe Bartozzi, NSSF president and CEO. “These figures tell us that there is a continued strong appetite for lawful firearm ownership by law-abiding Americans and that firearm manufacturers across the country continue to deliver the quality firearms our customers have come to expect.”
Annual background check data shows that firearm sales will typically rise during the final months of the year, coinciding with hunting seasons and holiday sales.
Figures for each day of unadjusted FBI NICS background checks are as follows:
- Saturday, Nov. 23 — 86,224
- Sunday, Nov. 24 — 49,535
- Monday, Nov. 25 — 89,662
- Tuesday, Nov. 26 — 98,093
- Wednesday, Nov. 27 — 104,896
- Thursday, Nov. 28 — 15,074
- Friday, Nov. 29 — 169,906
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