---
title: "Most Gun Owners Favor Background Checks for Private Gun Sales"
description: "More than eight-in-ten gun owners support proposals to require background checks on private gun sales and at gun shows."
date: "2013-02-13"
authors:
  - name: "Pew Research Center"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2013/02/13/most-gun-owners-favor-background-checks-for-private-gun-sales/"
---

# Most Gun Owners Favor Background Checks for Private Gun Sales

A third (33%) of Americans say there are guns, rifles or pistols in their home, which is little changed from recent surveys.

More than twice as many gun owners (65%) as those who do not own guns (30%) say it is more important to protect gun rights than to control gun ownership. (When it comes to the public as a whole, 51% of Americans say it is more important to control gun ownership, while 45% say it is more important to protect gun rights).

While gun owners, unlike the public at large, oppose gun control measures such as banning assault-style weapons, a big majority of gun owners (85%) support making private gun sales and sales at gun shows subject to background checks. That matches the level of support among the general public for doing this.

By 60% to 37%, gun owners also favor the creation of a federal government database to track all gun sales, which is also favored by the overall public (67% to 30%). [Read more](www.pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/politics/2013/01/14/in-gun-control-debate-several-options-draw-majority-support/#gunowners)

[![](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/01/1-14-13-8.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2013/01/14/in-gun-control-debate-several-options-draw-majority-support/#gunowners)