For Less Than $500, You Can Own the Best-Selling Pistol in America

24/7 Wall St. Insights

• Pistols have been the best-selling guns in the United States for more than a decade.
• The companies producing the best-selling pistols in America have large U.S.-based manufacturing locations, with some producing over 1 million pistols a year.
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The Founding Fathers included the Second Amendment in the American Constitution to empower citizens to defend the nation’s freedom from both foreign and domestic threats. While our circumstances have evolved drastically in the nearly 250 years since, many Americans still hold this right in high regard and own personal guns for sport shooting, hunting, collecting, or personal safety. In fact, over the last 80 years, the share of Americans with a gun in their home has ranged from 34% to 51%, according to Gallup survey data.

While gun ownership has a centuries-long history in the United States, the prevailing reasons Americans choose to keep firearms have shifted in recent decades. According to Gallup, the share of gun owners who have a firearm for protection against crime climbed from 65% to 88% between 2000 and 2021. Over the same period, the share of gun owners who keep a firearm for hunting fell from 59% to 56%.

Shifts in American gun culture and growing concern over personal protection appear to have had a meaningful impact on the firearm industry, as demand for handguns — particularly semi-automatic pistols — has surged in recent years. Typically concealable and easy to maneuver in tight, indoor spaces, pistols are an ideal self-defense weapon for many gun owners — both at home and in public places.

In 2010, for the first time in a decade and a half, pistols overtook rifles as the most-produced firearm type in the United States — and for 12 of the last 13 years, consumer demand for pistols has outpaced demand for every other firearm type. Between 2020 and 2022 alone, more than 18.4 million pistols were manufactured in the U.S., about 34% more than were made throughout the decade of the 1990s. (These are the most popular handgun manufacturers in the United States.)

Using a report from Gun Genius, which analyzed sales data from GunBroker.com, 24/7 Wall St. identified the 10 most popular pistols in America. Pistols are ranked on sales volume in the 2023 calendar year, though exact sales figures were not provided. Supplemental data on domestic manufacturing locations and production volume in 2021 are from the ATF.

It is important to note that this list was compiled using online gun sales only. Unlike most items purchased online, firearms are generally not shipped directly to your door. Typically, the process requires buyers to have their gun shipped to a Federally Licensed Firearm Dealer which will run a background check before transferring the gun to the customer.

Why This Matters

Whether or not you are a gun owner yourself, understanding which gun models are most popular can provide insights into current trends and values within American culture. Familiarizing yourself with the best-selling pistols can also aid in choosing the best firearm for purchase, identifying potential safety concerns, and participating in discussions about gun control and regulation.

These are the best-selling pistols in America.

10. Magnum Research Desert Eagle

• Approx. base retail price: $1,655
• Available chamberings include: .357 mag, .44 mag, .50 AE, .429 DE
• Magnum Research U.S. pistol production in 2021: 11,233 (0.2% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Pillager, MN

9. Springfield Hellcat

• Approx. base retail price: $470
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• Springfield U.S. pistol production in 2021: 148,264 (2.2% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Geneseo, IL

8. Beretta Model 90 Pistols

• Approx. base retail price: $405
• Available chamberings include: 9mm, .22 LR
• Beretta U.S. pistol production in 2021: 129,965 (1.9% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Gallatin, TN

7. Smith & Wesson M&P9

• Approx. base retail price: $340
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• Smith & Wesson U.S. pistol production in 2021: 1,649,540 (24.4% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Columbia, MO and Springfield, MA

6. Ruger Mark IV

• Approx. base retail price: $400
• Available chamberings include: .22 LR
• Ruger U.S. pistol production in 2021: 1,058,205 (15.7% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Prescott, AZ, Southport, CT, Mayodan, NC, and Newport, NH

5. CZ-USA CZ 75

• Approx. base retail price: $590
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• CZ-USA U.S. pistol production in 2021: 22,041 (0.3% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Kansas City, KS and Norwich, NY

4. Glock G43

• Approx. base retail price: $450
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• Glock U.S. pistol production in 2021: 581,944 (8.6% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Smyrna, GA

3. Glock G19

• Approx. base retail price: $500
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• Glock U.S. pistol production in 2021: 581,944 (8.6% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Smyrna, GA

2. Sig Sauer P320

• Approx. base retail price: $470
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• Sig Sauer U.S. pistol production in 2021: 1,214,013 (18.0% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Exeter, NH and Newington, NH

1. Sig Sauer P365

• Approx. base retail price: $480
• Available chamberings include: 9mm
• Sig Sauer U.S. pistol production in 2021: 1,214,013 (18.0% of all U.S. pistol production)
• U.S. manufacturing location(s) in 2021: Exeter, NH and Newington, NH

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