Why do more Canadians want to own guns?

[u/burnabybc]

https://thebigstorypodcast.ca

By Analysis by The Big Story podcast

Posted August 27, 2026 5:02 am.

Canadians have largely touted that one of our most distinctive attributes from the U.S. is our gun culture, and while that’s mostly true, the number of Canadian firearm licences has reached record levels.

The number of Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL) holders in Canada now sits at close to 2.5 million, a number that’s seen steady growth since 2021. With the growth of licences comes the growth in interest, which isn’t necessarily in line with the Canadian psyche.

Host Maria Kestane speaks to Noah Schwartz, professor and author of Targeted: Citizenship, Advocacy, and Gun Control in Canada. They discuss how Canada’s gun culture has evolved over recent years, why more people are interested in owning firearms, and how Ottawa can regulate a market that now includes 3D-printed paraphernalia.

[u/banditkeith]

If the number of licenses is growing and more people want to buy guns, clearly it is part of the Canadian psyche. Canadians aren't just Americans who don't have guns, this country has always had traditions of hunting and sport shooting, I'm tired of the media and the current government trying to stalinize part of our culture that they find inconvenient

It makes me sad when relatives I know are intelligent and reasonable people parrot misinformation about assault weapons, and now the governments attacks on semi auto firearms is sneaking into their understanding, it's exhausting trying to explain to people that the things they're afraid of are not, and were never, the threat they're being told they are

[u/Murray3-Dvideos → u/banditkeith]

Hypocrisy at its finest isn't? Colonial Canada and Citys like Montreal were literally founded for hunting, trapping and trading. Canada (in the European sense) would not exist if it was not for civilian ownership of guns.

[u/Cope180-Enjoyer → u/Murray3-Dvideos]

Canada (in the European sense)

Until it got systemically invaded.

[u/Q-Ball7 → u/banditkeith]

I'm tired of the media and the current government trying to stalinize party of our culture that they find inconvenient

They're just doing exactly what the (Blue-voting/media class) Americans tell them to do.

Their subculture- the culture of Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal- is in truth far more Americanized than the rest of Canada. The problem is that, unlike the US (and why they're so intense is to compensate for this), we have none of the laws that keep them from imposing it everywhere else, which is why their doing that is so incredibly destructive.

[u/fyfnw → u/Q-Ball7]

If we have any hope for the future, this needs to be next political battle. Or else we are doomed to cycle between granting rights, and then taking them away. Governments shouldn't be able to so drastically impact your life as the Liberals have done. There must be more protections against their discrimination of the firearms community.

[u/Q-Ball7 → u/fyfnw]

This is the current political battle.

"More powerful local governance" is what "separation" is and does. That's why AB wants it, that's why QC wants it, SE Ontario's going to want it if Carney fucks up the trade war and leaves them all jobless, the list goes on.

Leaving what is functionally the Ottawa Empire in charge as-is will destroy the country for no other reason than because they felt like it that day; that's why the country to our south built as much resistance against that into themselves as they could.

[u/fyfnw → u/Q-Ball7]

I agree 100%, but this isn't on the general countries radar. Everyone is too busy with their "elbows up" to notice they are being played... and we will have to endure multiple decades of Liberal rule before they wake up. IF they wake up.

[u/Q-Ball7 → u/fyfnw]

Then that is a clear demonstration they were never worthy to rule themselves in the first place, and if those of us who do realize cannot meaningfully exercise power over those that can't, then neither do we.

In the meantime, I will do what I can.

[u/Goliad1990 → u/Q-Ball7]

Really well said 

[u/dsac → u/Q-Ball7]

Blue-voting/media class Americans

Why do you equate the media with supporting the Democrats, when, like in Canada, 90% of US media is owned by Trump-donating/kneeling Republican billionaires?

[u/Goliad1990 → u/dsac]

like in Canada

I'm very aware that this is the narrative on Canadian Reddit broadly, because it tends to lean much farther left than the general population and they have no mainstream media that aligns with their views. But acting as if Canadian media is Trump-aligned is the absolute height of delusion and makes me question the actual sanity of the userbase

[u/mischling2543 → u/Goliad1990]

The statistic they usually cite is also heavily skewed by newspapers with relatively low readerships

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[u/Embarrassed-Egg-9671 → u/banditkeith]

You don't need an assault rifle, only the terrorist cells in Canada do. There are more cells in Canada than you think, hundreds. One, used to train near Midland Ontario, it was pretty obvious, they were either stopped, or moved to a new place, I haven't seen them in over 15 years. A lot of the assault rifle ban has to do with not arming these people. The public record only mentions it as an aside. But, it makes sense to make the inevitable mass shootings in Canada the scapegoat for the ban. If people knew knew their neighbours were on CSIS watch lists they'd freak out. Easier to have abiding firearm owners freak out. They are a smaller group.

[u/Mdaumer]

Because guns are awesome, and so fun.

[u/TyrannasaurusRecht → u/Mdaumer]

Honestly though. Some scream about how we must all be homicidal maniacs but by god do I just love shooting steel targets at 400m.

Pew--1 2 3-- clatink

Pew--1 2 3-- clatink

Pew--1 2 3--- 4 5 fuck

[u/Murray3-Dvideos]

"Which isn't necessarily in line with the Canadian Psyche" ...... more of that Montreal and Toronto are the center of the Universe and therefore are the basis of whats actually Canadian BS.

[u/Borealbound → u/Murray3-Dvideos]

Unrelated to this, I really liked the SVD styled stock you made for that SKS, assuming that is you. 

[u/ltcmotherteresa]

“…isn’t necessarily in line with the Canadian psyche.”

More correctly, it isn’t in line with the preferred ideology they want to push.

[u/coniferslav → u/ltcmotherteresa]

exactly, not sure what they define as "Canadian psyche" but out west here everyone and their dog has guns and its been that way since confederation.

[u/FalseFactsOrg]

Because no one feels safe anymore

[u/SceneAccomplished549 → u/FalseFactsOrg]

This. This is the honest to God truth now.

When it takes certain police departments 1 hour to respond to a call (i have heard some people phoning and no one being there to answer 911 calld) people will eventually want to take matters into their own hands....

Whether the government, police want them to or not.

[u/Cope180-Enjoyer → u/SceneAccomplished549]

Still hilarious when gangs try and raid rural homes and be too stupid to know every 2nd home has dogs.

[u/baedriaan → u/FalseFactsOrg]

I get either fearful agreement or accusations of fear mongering when I say this to people irl.

[u/CallousDisregard13 → u/FalseFactsOrg]

10 years of failed Liberal policies right across the board, including mass immigration from countries who's cultures don't mix. They've completely destroyed the high trust society we used to have

[u/iz296 → u/CallousDisregard13]

The Canada I've become an adult in is not the same Canada that I was promised as a kid. It's unrecognizable. I'm not proud to say it but I don't recall the last time I sang our national anthem... It's lost its meaning. Just doesn't feel like there's much to be proud of these days.

[u/Flat-Dark-Earth → u/FalseFactsOrg]

Right. Take that CFSC course, check off “sport shooting” or “hunting” as the reason for application.

Meanwhile the unspoken truth has always been there, at the back of everyone’s mind.

[u/Krasdf]

There’s a lot more to Canada than Toronto fancy boys.

[u/GinnAdvent]

The prof was being neutral, and the host was pretty straightforward with the questions most of the time.

Of course some of them feel like baiting ones, but at least everyone bound to ask those.

The thing is, if you are a firearm owner, it would be very natural to see it as way of life. But I am sure the anti gun group can manage to say it in a way that change their narrative.

Interestingly, Noah did say that gun confiscation and gun control isn't the biggest priorities now. So it will probably be dealt with legislation down the road.

I hope we got 3 mil PAL holder soon so it's just go to show that despite all the talk from Liberals, people are just not buying it.

[u/Spiritual_Length9536]

We have always had a gun culture, distinct from America's. Most of the world, including America was inspired by it in various ways. 

[u/alonesomestreet → u/Spiritual_Length9536]

This. Our gun culture isn’t guns masquerading as culture, like in America. It’s culture, with guns.

[u/Bowmann-94 → u/Spiritual_Length9536]

Genuinely curious how so?

[u/Spiritual_Length9536 → u/Bowmann-94]

Goes back to to revolutionary wars technically we weren't a country known as Canada but the British influenced the idea of militia for the states, we had one of the first" modern" civil defense programs, which many other countries model. While our is based in leisure, hunting and heritage today there was a strong defense aspect at least during ww2 and the cold war. 

[u/fuckbitingflies → u/Spiritual_Length9536]

Agreed. Having lived in the South for a brief stint and travelling all around the US for work and leisure, our gun culture is very different to theirs, although it may have crept slightly more in their direction for some people in recent years. Apart from the influence of historical gun use and ownership in Canada, I think there are also stark differences that persist when acquisition, ownership, and safety are not seen as trivial.

[u/GuySavardy]

I want mail order machine guns like we used to have in the 70’s.

[u/hafetysazard]

I don’t think as many Canadians are as brainwashed about the government’s, “gun crime strategy,” as some very vocal people are. They totally get the practical benefits and uses of firearms, and understand what they’re doing legally has, in no way, anything to do with what criminals are doing. Plus, the gun grabs and prohibitions are forcing people on the fence to take the plunge to get something before it is too late. 

[u/TyrannasaurusRecht → u/hafetysazard]

With 2.5 million legal firearm owners any claims that each owner is a bloodthirsty mass maniac falls apart immediately, because clearly not and never were.

We dont ban medications that cause issues for one in 2.5 million individuals... because exactly, it may not be that medication at all or so rare an effect in so unique an individual and context that the benefits dramatically outweigh the risks.

The liberals lean on treating firearms as if they have zero benefit or purpose to push on the idea even infinitesimal risk is not worth it, but thats just not true.

Canadians arent buying the rhetoric that firearms have no place at all in society.

[u/No_Actuary6054]

Because we want to and it’s none of their fucking business.

[u/coniferslav]

Guns have always been a part of Canadian culture once you leave the city.

[u/Content_Sky_2676 → u/coniferslav]

The amusing thing is that by both number of licenses and number of firearms owned back in the days of the long gun registry, most legal gun owners and guns were in cities, just firearms ownership has been repeatedly cast as an urban-rural thing and Canadian firearms owners aren't blatant about it so people don't realize how many firearms owners there are.

I've had multiple conversations with people who got onto the subject of firearms and how they don't know anyone who owns guns or why they would have them, only to go through the list of our mutual acquaintances who own guns. Usually blows their minds.

[u/WoolooOfWallStreet → u/coniferslav]

Exactly
Cooeys and Lee Enfields have been intertwined with Canadian culture for the past century

Robert Furlong (who held the world sniper record for a while) taught himself how to fire a rifle ambidextrously when he was a child

The Canadian Army sniper team was very prolific in the Global War on Terror

These weren’t flukes

[u/IGnuGnat → u/WoolooOfWallStreet]

Small point of order:

It is generally widely agreed that the best military snipers in the Canadian military were those who brought their firearms skills with them; not the ones who were first trained how to use firearms, in the military.

I think it's important for people to understand this point,

[u/mustang-4life]

I think people that were always hesitant to purchase them are now deciding to before the “government” out right bans them. An unarmed society is much easier to control. Hitler did this with the Jewish population is a prime example

[u/Complete_Ad1862]

Because being able to defend yourself and your family is attractive to some people.

[u/Spirited_Comedian225]

Because I’m my peaceful not harmless

[u/Doogie-Howser]

Why do people who don't know anything about Canada seem to believe only Americans have guns?

[u/Goliad1990 → u/Doogie-Howser]

80% of Canadians live in like three giant cities, and don't know jack shit about anything outside their city limits.

And because it's unironically a psyop. "You don't want guns, that's an American thing" is just an incredibly useful myth for the powers that be to cultivate, to convince dumbass nationalists to just stay unarmed.

[u/Otherwise_Rub_9515]

Fuck I thought we were closer to 3 million 

[u/anni_shoots → u/Otherwise_Rub_9515]

Comes from an Angus Reid survey from a few years back where they extrapolated 3.4 million gun owners in Canada based on a much larger percentage of respondants self-reporting that they own at least one gun. It was a deeply flawed survey for a whole bunch of reasons, 2.4 million is the number of PAL holders, the actual number of gun owners is likely smaller since not everyone with a PAL owns a gun.

[u/Otherwise_Rub_9515 → u/anni_shoots]

What about all the old guys that have let their PAL's expire and never renewed? 

[u/anni_shoots → u/Otherwise_Rub_9515]

There's a few for sure, but I doubt it's more than the people who hold a valid PAL and don't own any guns, and I seriously doubt it accounts for the disparity of a million people between Angus Reid's number and the federal government's.

[u/IGnuGnat → u/Otherwise_Rub_9515]

or simply never had a PAL in the first place, but still have a shotgun in the attic

[u/Flat-Dark-Earth → u/Otherwise_Rub_9515]

Give it a couple years.

[u/jayrdoos]

That’s great more people are interested in being licenced.

The whole gun grab is basically operation own the cons.

They just wanna spit in our faces because they can.

[u/DougMacRay617 → u/jayrdoos]

The gun grab is about disarming the population, plain and simple. Naive to think its about anything else at this point.

[u/Cope180-Enjoyer → u/DougMacRay617]

Actually hilarious how the more controlling and tyrannical the liberals get on firearms the more people don't, and won't follow "the rules" anymore.

[u/some_guy2024 → u/Cope180-Enjoyer]

Once you realize that the rules, writ-large, aren’t for the betterment of society but simply to serve the needs of the Laurentian ruling class, it stands to follow that you just stop following the ones you don’t agree with. It’s just another way that Canadian society is going away from being a high-trust society. There is absolutely no virtue in following laws put in place by some of the worst people in the country for their own benefit. This is something we need to absolutely ingrain in the younger generations (ie our children).

[u/fyfnw → u/jayrdoos]

What are the Cons going to do when they get elected?

[u/ovjho]

I wanted some guns because I like when the gun goes bang, boom even.

[u/Bubbafett33]

This is just more gaslighting attempting to convince people that owning a firearm is somehow wrong or un-Canadian.

[u/DryF1re]

I was at the range a while back. Only person there.

An older lady shows up with her brand new 10/22. I can see her fiddling with it trying to get the open bolt to slide shut after put the magazine in. I go over and help her find the bolt release. We start chatting.

She was an artist living in Victoria. Left as left can be. She said she was afraid of Trump and wanted to have a gun.

[u/TheSpagheeter]

Cause it’s dope the boom stick goes a rat-tat-tat-tat-tat, a tat-a-rat-at-tat-tat, a brrrrrr pew pew bang

[u/whodaphucru]

For anyone who grew up outside a major city guns are a big party of Canadian culture. Canadians are generally more discrete with their ownership versus the US.

[u/fyfnw → u/whodaphucru]

We can't afford to be anymore.

[u/ExplosiveFetusActual]

Because the newer generations are getting their licenses. A large amount of older people in rural areas who had guns before licensing just never bothered getting an FAC or PAL, and just continued on doing what they always did with no problems.

Also, sport shooting has increased significantly. Traditionally subsistence hunting was the main reason, and firearms ownership was pragmatic. Not so much any more. The same is happening in Europe and Asia in places where gun ownership is possible. IPSC and IDPA is popular over there.

[u/c20710]

I never cease to be appalled by the level of the rhetoric that has traction in the culture. Canada's obsession with the US has never accomplished anything good. "Not being like America" isn't a meaningful goal. Inherently it says nothing, achieves nothing, is founded on nothing. Japan's not like America. Finland's not like America. Brazil's not like America. What do those countries have in common? Nothing. "Not being like America" means...nothing.

You know what country is a lot like America, and always will be? Canada. Basically America, but y'know, worse, by all the basic economic metrics. Any excuse, no matter how vapid, to be a smug progressive is good enough.

Canada and the US had the same gun culture for a long time. The only difference is the US didn't shit theirs up on purpose out of pettiness, because they have a fundamental right to it. Good for them. Civil rights isn't something Canadians care much about. Not the basics anyway. The boutique stuff? Sure. Oh we'll agitate for anyone who wants to piss in the ladies' room, but property rights? Boring. Shut up. Don't be like America.

Joke of a country. The punchline is America doesn't think about us at all. And why would they?

[u/TimeNefariousness802]

Guns are fun to shoot, clean, build and look at.

Sometimes I just lay my collection out and admire them.

[u/Frreed]

Because they are cool and fun!

[u/KalashnikovParty]

i’m a history buff and interest in firearms mechanisms also relate to that. Also i like collecting old guns 

[u/Sad-Stop-2401]

Folks have VERY VERY VERY wrong ideas about Canada. It has historically very gun owning country for most parts with deep gun culture. The current anti gun hysteria is barely 30-40 years old.

I mean if you can know brits and scotts for one thing it was hunting and shooting.

[u/No_Armadillo2253]

Most of the people I know who've got into guns in the last 5 years did so because they saw first hand just how authoritarian a government can get and how quickly it can happen during the covid years.

Add to that how many of their fellow citizens fell in lock step with those measures and gleefully ratted out others for not falling in line, and we got a lot of people who are now very distrustful of their government and their fellow man.

[u/fyfnw]

I reject this Liberal definition that Canada doesn't have a firearms culture. They refuse to acknowledge Canada's firearms culture, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. We can't let them set the narrative tone for this discussion like they do for everything.

[u/yummybunnybear]

Maybe the current surge is due to recent bans and people finally realizing that guns shouldn't be taken for granted and they should get in on it while they still can

[u/westleysnipes604]

You can still enjoy shooting guns that a non gun owner or gun hater find scary and not habe our gun cluturr resemble Americas.

To be fair these demographics are complete morons when it comes to guns anyway. If I ask 100 gun hating Canadians if they think fully semi automatic firearms should be banned. 99 will say yes. If you can't see that this is a trick question then add yourself to that list of gun inept gun Hoplophobics.

In America people can carry guns out in public in many states. In Canada we can't even bring them anywhere but the range legally yet our state owned news loves to say "off our streets" every time they mention gun control.

Owning guns at high numbers doesn't mean we are killing each other with guns like they do in America. And even in America the large majority of gun deaths are gang related. But anti gun agenda calls every shooting where 4 people are shot a active shooter/ mass shooter. But truth is the shootings a re targeted.

[u/LeGaspyGaspe]

I've said it before and I'll say it again...

Why do more and more Canadians suddenly want to own guns? Because until a certain string of incredibly high profile political stunts occurred... Half the people in question didn't even know you could own guns, or had no idea how fundamentally easy and not-terribly-cost-prohibitive the process of getting the license was.

There is another source, however: Prior to the above, the increase starting around 2021 tracks with the increase in public interest in camping, hiking, and other outdoor pandemic friendly activities we saw at the same time and continue to see today. A lot of people needed new hobbies when Covid was in full swing. People who never even set foot outside their urban environments were faced with no choice but to discover provincial parks, crown land, hunting, fishing, hiking, boating, camping, and of course... Shooting.

So basically, the pandemic revived a whole bunch of hobbies that were starting to fizzle out and got an entire generation into, well, basically everything under the umbrella of "stuff you do outside more or less alone or in small groups." the continued actions by the government since have kept a lot of those activities in the public eye, and actually pushed them even further into the forefront, reaching more people than ever before.

[u/Longjumping_Stuff_87]

I only wanted it because of the fact that USA threatened to invade Canada.  I don't even like guns but the minute they threatened invasion , you can't be too careful dealing with Yanks. Better to to know how to use it than later. 

[u/thecoolernameistaken → u/Longjumping_Stuff_87]

Gotta be a bot

[u/fetishlyme]

Supply and demand. Any time shit goes down gun sales go up. Try take them away more people want them

[u/-FingerOnTheTrigger-]

I am trying to be a good advocate for firearms. Taking my friends out shooting and trying to have the conversations with people about how much fun it is to go out shooting. I think everyone should have at least 1 gun. It is infectious.

[u/fartsNdoom]

Because the Liberals insisted on importing people from countries that hate us, and allow those people to commit crimes and break the law with impunity.

[u/R4ID]

Cuse they're fucking SIIIIIIICK. XD

[u/CelebrationJaded5848]

I shoot in Waiprousis about twice a week and there has been a pretty significant increase in Indian shooters. It would stand to reason that our population increase would have a corresponding increase in participants. I’m not going to pretend I’m particularly enthusiastic about the scale or pace of immigration we’ve seen, or about how much Canada is changing as a result.

That said, if people coming here are becoming PAL holders and getting involved in shooting sports, I’ll take the win. Whatever I think about immigration policy, more Canadians owning firearms legally, learning to shoot responsibly, and developing an interest in protecting those rights is good for the firearms community.