January 6, 2026

New Year Buying Surge Shows 2026 Could Be The Year Of Suppressors

By Larry Keane

Gun owners from all across the country—except, of course, for California, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C.—can celebrate the New Year with a bang! Or, at least a suppressed bang, that is.

After Congress passed, and President Donald Trump signed into law, the One Big, Beautiful Bill last summer, the extra $200 tax on firearm suppressors, short-barrel rifles (SBRs) and short-barrel shotguns (SBSs) is no more.

During the final few months of 2025, many suppressor companies were known to cover the tax for suppressor buyers if they chose to make their purchase ahead of January 1 and the numbers noticeably increased before the holidays.

But with the ringing in of the New Year, suppressor purchases skyrocketed as expected. All signs suggest 2026 will be the Year of the Suppressor.

Not A Typo

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) informed NSSF that on Thursday, January 1, 2026, alone, an unprecedented surge in e-Forms submissions were being processed. That total was approximately 150,000 e-Forms. For an eye-popping comparison, last year, ahead of the $200-to-$0 tax change, typical daily volume on e-Forms for suppressors, SBRs and SBSs would hover closer to around 2,500.

That’s not a typo. Americans are taking advantage of the tax reduction on National Firearms Act (NFA) items—including firearm suppressors, SBSs and SBRs—in a big, big way.

That data tracks with other data points NSSF has seen in recent years and all expectations are that growth in the number of Americans who own a suppressor will explode.

Writing in The Outdoor Wire, Editor Paul Erhardt revealed that data from the American Suppressor Association (ASA) placed the number of registered firearm suppressors owned by law-abiding Americans at north of 4.4 million. It’s assumed that once the full-year 2025 figures are released, that number will top 5 million. In addition, a study commissioned by NSSF, titled “Suppressor Owner Study: Market Size, Purchase Profile & Journey, Satisfaction 2025,” found the suppressor market saw a 265 percent growth in suppressor from 2020 to 2024, and that during that same period, the total number of suppressors in circulation doubled. That NSSF data revealed that approximately 35 percent of the 2020-2024 suppressor purchasers were first-time buyers.

“There’s little doubt that 2026 will be the Year of the Suppressor. Everything is coming together at the right time. The only question is how much growth will we see in 2026,” Erhardt wrote.

Still Work Ahead

Dropping the NFA tax on suppressors, SBRs and SBSs was a significant accomplishment and should be recognized as such. NSSF remained steadfast in support of the tax reduction during negotiations surrounding the One Big, Beautiful Bill to ensure the tax elimination was included in the final enacted bill.

But there is still plenty of work to do ahead for law-abiding gun owners and Second Amendment supporters.

The One Big, Beautiful Bill was a budget reconciliation measure, which meant it only impacted tax and fiscal issues—not legislative policy unrelated to taxes. That means that the registration and duplicative background check requirements for the purchase of a firearm suppressor, SBS or SBR remain intact for now.

NSSF remains committed to working with Second Amendment advocates and allies on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., to pass the Hearing Protection Act (H.R. 404/S. 364) and the Stop Harassing Owners of Rifles Today (SHORT) Act (H.R. 2395/S. 1162) through Congress and supporting President Trump signing them into law. These bills would remove the extra NFA requirements from purchasing these lawful firearms and accessories, treating them instead as regular firearms. That means purchasers could walk into their neighborhood firearm retailer, fill out and sign the ATF Form 4473, pass the FBI National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) verification and walk out of the store with their suppressor, SBS or SBR. Criminals would obviously still be barred from purchasing these items, despite what lies and falsehoods gun control advocates repeat.

Celebrate The Safe Way

Firearm suppressors are safety devices—significantly lowering the noise report from a firearm to a safer decibel level. They are utilized for the safety of the marksman and for neighbors or those in close proximately to an outdoor range, for example. Lowering the cost barrier to zero for law-abiding gun owners to purchase a suppressor is great news and Americans are showing very early signs they are taking full advantage.

As the numbers continue to come into focus, both rounding out the final stretch of 2025 and the new year just beginning, it seems crystal clear that 2026 will, in fact, be the year of the suppressor.

Hear, hear!

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