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Crime · United States · Updated 2026-10-26

How many mass shootings happen in the United States each year?

Depending on the definition, counts of mass shootings in the United States in 2025 range from 2 to 407: Gun Violence Archive counted 407 shootings with four or more people shot, the FBI 34 active shooter incidents, Mother Jones 7 public shootings with three or more killed and The Violence Project 2 public shootings with four or more killed.

Every figure in this summary is calculated from the sources listed on this page.

Mass shootings, four or more shot (Gun Violence Archive), 2025

Shootings in which four or more people, not counting the shooter, were shot (injured or killed) in one incident, in any place and for any motive. United States, Calendar year 2025. Unit: incidents.

407incidents, 2025

63Trust scoreModerate certainty

Only one source – not confirmed by others. Agreement can't be measured, so the score can't reach High.

Score breakdown

Quality32 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How much each source counts

  • GVA100%

Sources

SourceValueDefinitionQualityWeight
Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting reportGun Violence Archive · Independent countRetrieved 2026-10-264072025
Incidents in which four or more people, not counting the shooter, were shot (injured or killed) at the same general time and place.

Any location and any circumstance: GVA does not exclude gang, robbery, family or other shootings.

2014-2025 from GVA's yearly summary ledgers (https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/past-tolls, published date 26 October 2026). The 2025 figure was checked against the 407 incident rows on the 2025 mass shooting report pages. GVA keeps editing past incidents, so earlier years can still change.

4 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. GVA publishes its definitions and how it collects and verifies incidents.
  • No: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. Independent non-profit count; not official statistics and not peer-reviewed.
  • Yes: Full count or representative sample. Attempts to log every shooting from police, government and media sources daily; not a sample.
  • Yes: Raw data downloadable. Every incident is listed with date, place and victims on the yearly report pages (407 rows read for 2025).
  • Yes: No known break or quality problem. Same four-or-more-shot rule for 2014-2025; single incidents are reclassified when new facts emerge.
100%
Mass shootings, four or more shot (Gun Violence Archive), 2025, by source · incidents
0200400600800201420162018202020222025Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2014: 272Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2015: 332Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2016: 384Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2017: 346Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2018: 335Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2019: 414Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2020: 611Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2021: 690Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2022: 645Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2023: 659Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2024: 503Gun Violence Archive, mass shooting report, 2025: 407
Show the data as a table
YearGun Violence Archive, mass shooting report
2014272
2015332
2016384
2017346
2018335
2019414
2020611
2021690
2022645
2023659
2024503
2025407

Public mass shootings, three or more killed (Mother Jones), 2025

Indiscriminate shootings in public places in which three or more people, not counting the attacker, were killed, excluding gang, robbery and home killings. United States, Calendar year 2025. Unit: incidents.

7incidents, 2025

55Trust scoreLow certainty

Only one source – not confirmed by others. Agreement can't be measured, so the score can't reach High.

Score breakdown

Quality24 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How much each source counts

  • Mother Jones100%

Sources

SourceValueDefinitionQualityWeight
Mother Jones, US mass shootings databaseMother Jones · Independent countRetrieved 2026-10-2672025
Indiscriminate shootings in public places in which a lone attacker killed three or more people, not counting the attacker (four or more before 2013).

Excludes shootings primarily tied to gang activity or armed robbery, killings in private homes and attacks where the perpetrator is unidentified; includes a few spree shootings across several places.

Counted from the year column of Mother Jones' published spreadsheet (page updated 16 October 2026, https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/12/mass-shootings-mother-jones-full-data/); criteria from its guide (https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/07/mass-shootings-map/).

3 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. Mother Jones publishes its inclusion criteria and the sources for each case.
  • No: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. Journalists' database; not official statistics and not peer-reviewed.
  • No: Full count or representative sample. A case list selected by journalists; Mother Jones says it is not all-inclusive.
  • Yes: Raw data downloadable. The whole database is published as a spreadsheet and CSV.
  • Yes: No known break or quality problem. Same three-or-more-killed rule for every year since January 2013, so 2014-2025 is consistent.
100%
Public mass shootings, three or more killed (Mother Jones), 2025, by source · incidents
051015201420162018202020222025Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2014: 4Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2015: 7Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2016: 6Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2017: 11Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2018: 12Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2019: 10Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2020: 2Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2021: 6Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2022: 12Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2023: 12Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2024: 2Mother Jones, US mass shootings database, 2025: 7
Show the data as a table
YearMother Jones, US mass shootings database
20144
20157
20166
201711
201812
201910
20202
20216
202212
202312
20242
20257

Public mass shootings, four or more killed (The Violence Project), 2025

Shootings in a public place in which four or more people, not counting the shooter, were killed with firearms, excluding gang, crime-motivated and home killings. United States, Calendar year 2025. Unit: incidents.

2incidents, 2025

55Trust scoreLow certainty

Only one source – not confirmed by others. Agreement can't be measured, so the score can't reach High.

Score breakdown

Quality24 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How much each source counts

  • Violence Proj.100%

Sources

SourceValueDefinitionQualityWeight
The Violence Project, mass shooter databaseThe Violence Prevention Project, Hamline University · Independent countRetrieved 2026-10-2622025
Shootings in a public location in which four or more people, not counting the shooter, were killed with firearms, not attributable to underlying criminal activity.

Excludes domestic killings in private homes and gang-related violence.

Counted from the case list and yearly chart data on the public database page, which agree (202 cases since 1966; the latest is dated 2025-08-01).

3 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. The definition, sources and two-coder process are published on the methodology page.
  • No: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. University research database (first funded by the National Institute of Justice); not official statistics.
  • Yes: Full count or representative sample. Aims to include every case meeting the definition since 1966, each coded by two researchers.
  • No: Raw data downloadable. The full dataset is released only on a reviewed request; the public page shows the case list.
  • Yes: No known break or quality problem. Same definition for 2014-2025; version 10 of the database was released in January 2026, after the year ended.
100%
Public mass shootings, four or more killed (The Violence Project), 2025, by source · incidents
02.557.510201420162018202020222025The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2014: 3The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2015: 6The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2016: 4The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2017: 7The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2018: 9The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2019: 10The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2020: 2The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2021: 8The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2022: 7The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2023: 8The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2024: 3The Violence Project, mass shooter database, 2025: 2
Show the data as a table
YearThe Violence Project, mass shooter database
20143
20156
20164
20177
20189
201910
20202
20218
20227
20238
20243
20252

Active shooter incidents (FBI), 2025

Incidents in which one or more people actively tried to kill people with a firearm in a populated area, whether or not anyone was hit. United States, Calendar year 2025. Unit: incidents.

34incidents, 2025

55Trust scoreLow certainty

Only one source – not confirmed by others. Agreement can't be measured, so the score can't reach High.

Score breakdown

Quality24 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How much each source counts

  • FBI100%

Sources

SourceValueDefinitionQualityWeight
FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United StatesFederal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), with the ALERRT Center at Texas State University · Police and justice recordsRetrieved 2026-10-26342025
Active shooter incidents: one or more people actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area with a firearm, with or without casualties.

Excludes gang and drug violence, residential or domestic disputes, self-defence, barricade or hostage situations and shootings connected to another crime.

2021-2025 from the 2025 report, PDF page 53; 2020 from the 2024 report, PDF page 43 (https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/reports-and-publications/2024-active-shooter-report/view); 2014-2019 from the 20-year review, PDF page 6 (https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/reports-and-publications/active-shooter-incidents-20-year-review-2000-2019-060121.pdf/view). Values recorded in scripts/us-mass-shootings.manual.json. fbi.gov blocks scripted downloads, so the PDFs were read in a browser.

3 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. Each report publishes the definition, the exclusions and the review by the FBI and ALERRT working group.
  • Yes: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. Official FBI publication.
  • Yes: Full count or representative sample. Aims to include every incident in the country that meets the definition; not a sample.
  • No: Raw data downloadable. Published only as PDF reports with incident summaries; no downloadable dataset.
  • No: No known break or quality problem. Counts get revised: the 20-year review added incidents the annual reports had missed (1 in 2017, 3 in 2018, 2 in 2019), so the latest year may still rise.
100%
Active shooter incidents (FBI), 2025, by source · incidents
020406080201420162018202020222025FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2014: 20FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2015: 20FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2016: 20FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2017: 31FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2018: 30FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2019: 30FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2020: 40FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2021: 61FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2022: 50FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2023: 48FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2024: 24FBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States, 2025: 34
Show the data as a table
YearFBI, Active Shooter Incidents in the United States
201420
201520
201620
201731
201830
201930
202040
202161
202250
202348
202424
202534

Why the numbers differ

  • Shot versus killed: Gun Violence Archive counts people shot, injured or killed. Of its 407 mass shootings in 2025, 188 killed nobody, 31 killed three or more and 16 killed four or more. Calculated from the 2025 rows of GVA's mass shooting report. (source, retrieved 2026-10-26)
  • Public versus any location: Mother Jones and The Violence Project count only shootings in public places and leave out killings inside private homes; the FBI counts attacks in a populated area; Gun Violence Archive counts any location, including homes and streets.
  • Motive and circumstance: Mother Jones leaves out shootings tied mainly to gang activity or armed robbery; The Violence Project leaves out gang-related and other crime-motivated shootings and domestic killings at home; the FBI leaves out gang and drug violence, domestic disputes, self-defence, hostage situations and shootings connected to another crime. Gun Violence Archive leaves none of these out.
  • The FBI sets no casualty threshold at all: of its 34 active shooter incidents in 2025, 3 hurt nobody and 7 met its mass killing definition of three or more killed. (source, retrieved 2026-10-26)
  • Thresholds also differ between the two killed-based counts: Mother Jones lowered its threshold from four to three killed for cases from January 2013, following the federal definition of mass killing, while The Violence Project still requires four killed.

Common mistakes

  • Comparing a Gun Violence Archive figure with a Mother Jones or Violence Project figure as if they counted the same thing. In 2025 they were 407, 7 and 2: GVA's count was about 58 times Mother Jones' because it counts people shot rather than killed and includes every place and motive. (source, retrieved 2026-10-26)
  • Reading the FBI's active shooter count as a count of mass shootings: it includes attacks in which nobody was hurt and leaves out many shootings with several victims, such as gang and domestic shootings. (source, retrieved 2026-10-26)
  • Comparing a recent year with older ones without checking for revisions: the FBI's 20-year review added incidents it had missed in 2017-2019, and Gun Violence Archive reclassifies incidents as new facts come in. (source, retrieved 2026-10-26)