Report Highlights: There are approximately 102 million gun owners in America. Of those, 0.5% to 2.5% report using firearms for self-defense every year. Studies and surveys from 1987 to 2025 suggest instances of defensive gun use range from 65,000 to 2.5 million each year. The most conservative defensive gun use estimate from the NCVS is …Report Highlights: There are approximately 102 million gun owners in America. Of those, 0.5% to 2.5% report using firearms for self-defense every year. Studies and surveys from 1987 to 2025 suggest instances of defensive gun use range from 65,000 to 2.5 million each year. The most conservative defensive gun use estimate from the NCVS is …