Todays airguns are now so powerful, many people wonder, “Are airguns, pellet guns or bb guns considered firearms?“
The answer to this questions is No, they are not considered firearms according to the United States Federal Firearms laws. A firearm is considered any weapon which is designed to or can readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive.
Since airguns, pellet guns and bb guns projectile are propelled by air, no explosion is present and thus they are no considered firearms.
Even though airguns, pellet guns, and bb guns are not considered firearms by federal definition, several states still do regulate these “non-powder” guns similarly to firearms. These states include:
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Illinois
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wisconsin
For more information on the laws and regulations for each state regarding airguns, pellet guns and bb guns, check out our State Laws and Regulations page here.