Yes, a 20-year-old can buy a gun, but the type and the source matter. Under federal law, someone who is 20 can walk into a licensed gun store and buy a rifle or shotgun after passing a background check. Handguns from a licensed dealer are off-limits until 21. A private, in-state transfer of a handgun from one individual to another is allowed federally at 18, though a growing number of states have closed that door. Where you live changes the answer as much as your age does.
Rifles and Shotguns From a Licensed Dealer
This is the straightforward path. Federal law lets licensed dealers sell rifles, shotguns, and ammunition for them to anyone 18 or older.1Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers A 20-year-old fills out ATF Form 4473, passes the background check, and leaves with the firearm. Hunting rifles, sporting long guns, and home-defense shotguns are all available on the same terms as they would be for a 25-year-old.
The one asterisk is state law. A handful of states have raised the minimum age for all long gun purchases to 21, and in those states this path is closed. More on which states below.
Handguns From a Licensed Dealer
Federal law blocks it. A federally licensed dealer cannot sell or deliver a handgun, or handgun ammunition, to anyone the dealer knows or has reasonable cause to believe is under 21.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The rule applies to every gun shop, pawn shop, and sporting goods chain holding a Federal Firearms License.
The block happens before the background check runs. When the dealer sees a date of birth on Form 4473 showing the buyer is under 21, the handgun sale is terminated on the spot.3Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Federal Firearms Licensee Quick Reference and Best Practices Guide There is no federal waiver or exception for civilians. A knowing violation by the dealer is a federal felony carrying up to five years in prison,4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties which is why dealers enforce it strictly.
Buying a Handgun Through a Private Transfer
Federal law treats private sales differently. An individual who is not in the business of selling firearms can transfer a handgun to someone at least 18 years old, as long as both parties live in the same state.1Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Minimum Age for Gun Sales and Transfers A parent gifting a pistol to a 20-year-old child, or a neighbor selling a used handgun, fits within this rule.
Two conditions govern the transaction. It has to stay inside state lines: any interstate transfer has to route through a licensed dealer, and the dealer will enforce the age-21 rule for handguns. And the seller has to be a genuine private party, not someone running an unlicensed firearms business by another name.
About 17 states and the District of Columbia now require all firearm transfers, including private ones, to go through a licensed dealer for a background check. In those states, the private-transfer route is effectively closed for handguns, because the dealer has to enforce the federal age floor. Before assuming this option is available, check whether your state requires universal background checks.
Owning a Handgun at 20 Is Legal Under Federal Law
Buying and possessing are separate questions. Federal law prohibits handgun possession only by juveniles, defined as anyone under 18.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts Once you turn 18, there is no federal ban on having a handgun. A 20-year-old who lawfully received one through a private sale, a gift, or an inheritance can keep it and use it for target shooting, hunting, or home defense without violating federal law. State rules on possession may still apply.
Straw Purchases Are a Serious Federal Crime
The obvious workaround, asking someone over 21 to buy a handgun for you, is a straw purchase. Federal law makes it a felony to buy a firearm on behalf of someone else while misrepresenting who the actual buyer is. The maximum is 15 years in prison, rising to 25 years if the firearm is connected to a felony, terrorism, or drug trafficking.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 932 – Straw Purchasing of Firearms Both the person who received the gun and the person who bought it can be charged.
Lying on Form 4473 about being the actual buyer is a separate offense carrying up to five years on its own.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties A true gift is different. A parent who independently decides to buy a handgun as a birthday present, using their own money, is making a legitimate gift. The line is crossed when the under-21 person picks out the gun, provides the cash, or directs the purchase.
States That Set the Age Higher Than Federal Law
Federal law is a floor, and a growing number of states sit above it. As of 2025, roughly eight states require buyers to be 21 for all firearms, rifles and shotguns included: California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Rhode Island, and Vermont. In those states, a 20-year-old cannot buy any firearm through any channel.
A larger group, including Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, and Washington, sets 21 as the minimum for handguns and certain semiautomatic rifles but still allows 18-year-olds to buy standard rifles and shotguns. Washington’s law, for example, raises the age only for handguns and what it defines as semiautomatic assault rifles; bolt-action rifles and pump-action shotguns remain available at 18.
Many of these same states also require every transfer to run through a licensed dealer, which closes the private-sale path along with the retail one. Violating a state age restriction can bring felony charges and a permanent loss of firearm rights.
Carrying a Gun at 20
Legal possession and legal carry are separate. Many states set the minimum age for a concealed carry permit at 21, but the picture has shifted, and a 20-year-old has real carry options in a meaningful number of states.
Permitless Carry
Roughly 29 states now allow some form of permitless (or constitutional) carry. The age floor varies. About a dozen states, including Idaho, Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, South Dakota, and Vermont, allow permitless carry starting at 18. Others set it at 21, sometimes with an exception for active-duty military as young as 18. Permitless carry does not automatically mean carry at any adult age, so the specific state age has to be checked.
Permits for Applicants Under 21
Some permit-issuing states have lowered the application age below 21, especially for active-duty military, veterans, or applicants with documented firearms training. Fingerprinting and background checks are typical, and processing for younger applicants can take longer.
Crossing State Lines
A carry right that works at home may not travel. If a 20-year-old has a valid permit from a state that issues at 18, a state that requires its permit holders to be 21 can refuse to honor it. Driving into the wrong state with a firearm can turn a lawful carrier into a felon within a few miles. Check the destination state’s law before you cross.
Active-Duty Military
Federal law does not include a military exception to the 21-year handgun-purchase rule for licensed dealers. A 20-year-old service member faces the same federal bar as a civilian. Federal law does treat active-duty personnel as residents of the state where their permanent duty station sits, which matters for purchases that require state residency.
The exemptions that do exist are at the state level. California, for example, lets active members of the U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard, and active reserve components who are 18 or older buy firearms that would otherwise be restricted to 21. Several permitless carry states drop the age floor to 18 for active military. A military exemption in one state has no effect in another, so both the duty-station state and any state of intended carry need to be checked.
Court Challenges Are Unsettled
The Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen changed how courts evaluate gun laws, and age-based restrictions have drawn a wave of challenges with mixed results. In 2025, the Fifth Circuit struck down the federal prohibition on licensed dealers selling handguns to 18-to-20-year-olds in Reese v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, finding insufficient historical support for the age restriction. The Third Circuit struck down Pennsylvania laws barring 18-to-20-year-olds from carrying during declared emergencies. The Tenth Circuit went the other way, upholding Colorado’s ban on firearm purchases by 18-to-20-year-olds.6Supreme Court of the United States. Brief in Response, No. 24-782
The Fifth Circuit’s ruling technically invalidated the federal handgun age restriction, but only within Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. How ATF is enforcing the rule there, and how other circuits will decide their own challenges, is still developing. The Supreme Court declined to take up a related Minnesota concealed carry age case in April 2025.7The Trace. Supreme Court Won’t Take Up Age Restrictions for Guns — for Now What is legal for a 20-year-old today can shift with the next ruling, so before making a purchase, confirm the current rule in your state and circuit.