24/7 Wall St. Insights

• The United States is the largest consumer market for firearms in the world, and to meet demand, there are thousands of federally licensed gunmakers across the 50 states.
• Due to the presence of a handful of companies, more firearms are manufactured in Massachusetts than in most other states.
• Also: 2 Dividend Legends to Hold Forever

The United States is home to less than 5% of the global population and more than 45% of the world’s civilian owned guns. The only country with more firearms than people — according to the Geneva based public policy research organization, Small Arms Survey — the U.S. has a gun culture like nowhere else on Earth, and demand from American consumers is fueling a multi-billion dollar industry. (Here is a look at the best-selling firearms in the United States.)

Records from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives show that there were over 3,700 active gunmakers in the U.S. in 2022. That same year, these companies collectively manufactured nearly 13.4 million firearms. As of 2023, the arms and ammunition industry generated more than $90 billion in economic output, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation, an industry trade association.

While there are gunmakers operating in each of the 50 states, Massachusetts stands out as a hub for small-arms manufacturing. A reported 735,445 firearms were made in Massachusetts in 2022, the seventh most among the 50 states, and equal to about 5.5% of all domestic firearm production that year.

Rifles accounted for the largest share of firearm production in Massachusetts at about 82.9%. Meanwhile, approximately 14.0% of firearms manufactured in the state were shotguns, 2.7% were pistols, and 0.4% were revolvers. Miscellaneous firearms, an ATF category that includes any other unclassified firearm or firearm component, including frames and receivers, accounted for 0.1% of Massachusetts’s total output in 2022.

While there were 28 federally licensed gunmakers operating in Massachusetts in 2022, the state’s firearm industry is dominated by just a small handful of companies. Only eight manufacturing facilities in the state produced at least 100 firearms in 2022. Among them, the largest by total output, is a plant in Westfield, MA, operated by Savage Arms. Savage manufactured a reported 719,641 firearms in this plant alone in 2022, or about 97.9% of all firearms produced in the state that year. (Here is a look at the largest firearm company in every state.)

Massachusetts’s firearm industry has a meaningful economic impact. Both directly and indirectly, arms and ammunition generated $926.4 million in output and supported an estimated 4,135 jobs in 2023, according to the NSSF. Additionally, through property, sales, and income taxes, the state and federal government collected a combined $105.2 million in revenue from Massachusetts’s arms and ammunition industry.

These are the leading firearm manufacturers in Massachusetts. It is important to note that this list is a ranking of federally licensed production facilities, and as a result, a company can appear more than once. Similarly, some brands on this list may be manufacturing firearms within the same facility as another, but are listed separately. Gunmakers who are federally licensed under their first and last name, rather than a company or brand name, were excluded from this list.

Why It Matters

The United States is the world’s largest consumer market for firearms, and partially as a result, there are thousands of federally licensed gunmakers across the 50 states. Due to the presence of a small handful of companies, most notably Savage, more guns are manufactured in Massachusetts than nearly anywhere else in the country.

8. JJT Enterprises, LLC

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 132 (0.02% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 100% misc.
• Production facility location: Barre, MA

7. Yankee Hill Machine Co. Inc.

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 383 (0.05% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 4.7% rifles, 95.3% misc.
• Production facility location: Easthampton, MA

6. Smith & Wesson Inc.

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 399 (0.05% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 59.1% pistols, 28.8% revolvers, 10.8% rifles, 0.3% shotguns, 1.0% misc.
• Production facility location: Springfield, MA

5. Mass Armament, LLC

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 614 (0.08% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 47.9% pistols, 8.0% revolvers, 31.1% rifles, 13.0% shotguns
• Production facility location: Bellingham, MA

4. Whalley Precision Inc.

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 2,892 (0.39% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 100% pistols
• Production facility location: Southwick, MA

3. Automated Finishing Company Inc.

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 5,456 (0.74% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 50.3% pistols, 45.6% revolvers, 0.1% rifles, 4.0% shotguns
• Production facility location: Attleboro, MA

2. Saeilo, Inc.

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 5,480 (0.75% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 90.9% pistols, 9.1% rifles
• Production facility location: Worcester, MA

1. Savage Arms, Inc.

• Firearms manufactured in 2022: 719,641 (97.85% of all guns made in state)
• Firearm production by type: 1.2% pistols, 84.6% rifles, 14.2% shotguns
• Production facility location: Westfield, MA

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