There isn’t one fixed number. In the United States, anti-gun restrictions are spread across federal law, state law, and local rules, so the total depends on how you count them. A state-by-state legal database found hundreds of firearm-related laws across all 50 states, showing how varied and layered the system is.

Why there’s no single count

Gun restrictions can include many different things, such as:

  • Background check requirements.
  • Permit rules for buying or carrying guns.
  • Waiting periods.
  • Magazine-cap limits.
  • Assault-weapon bans.
  • Storage and safety requirements.
  • Restrictions for people with certain criminal or mental health histories.

Because each state makes its own rules, one state may have only a few, while another has many more. A recent overview also notes that gun laws vary widely by state, including whether a permit or background check is required and whether open carry is regulated.

A practical way to think about it

If you mean “How many gun-restrictive laws exist in total across the U.S.?” the honest answer is dozens at the federal level and hundreds more across states , with the exact total changing as laws are passed, repealed, or updated. If you mean “How many states have stricter-than-average gun laws?” that depends on the specific restriction you’re counting, because different states regulate different parts of gun ownership and carrying in different ways.

Simple takeaway

There is no official single nationwide tally of “anti-gun restrictions.” The best short answer is that the U.S. has a large patchwork of firearm regulations, with hundreds of state-level laws plus federal rules.

Would you like a state-by-state breakdown of the major gun restrictions?