Have you ever wondered how awesome your state really is, using actual, quantifiable data? Some people look at the cost of living, education, and crime. Myself personally, I want to know which states have the most guns, per capita. The good news is that someone crunched the numbers and figured out the answer, although I don’t appreciate the tone of the article.

To start, the United States has the highest number of guns per capita in the world, with an estimated 120.5 guns per 100 people. If you’re from Mississippi, this simply means that there are more guns in the US than people – to the tune of 5 guns for every 4 people.  According to Google, the average gun owner in the US owns 12.6 guns, which definitely helps to average up the zeroes on the score sheet from non-gun-owners.

The states with the highest gun ownership rates are:

1. Montana (66.3%)
2. Wyoming (66.2%)
3. Alaska (64.5%)
4. Idaho (60.1%)
5. West Virginia (58.5%)
6. Arkansas (57.2%)
7. Mississippi (55.8%)
8. Alabama (55.5%)
9. South Dakota (55.3%)
10. North Dakota (55.1%)
11. Oklahoma (54.7%)
12. Kentucky (54.6%)
13. Tennessee (51.6%)
14. Oregon (50.8%)
15. Vermont (50.5%)
16. South Carolina (49.4%)
17. Georgia (49.2%)
18. Missouri (48.8%)
19. Kansas (48.9%)
20. Utah (48.8%)

These states are all located in the western and southern parts of the US, with the exception of Vermont.  Gotta say I am absolutely floored to not see my native state of Florida or my adopted state of Louisiana on the list. I would have bet you a possum that Louisiana would be in the top 5.

Another interesting stat: Vermont has the 15th most guns per capita of all fifty states, but the 13th lowest number of gun deaths per the CDC. Similarly, while Utah has a very high gun ownership rate, it’s #16 for the lowest gun deaths in the US. Finally, Louisiana isn’t even in the top 20 for gun ownership, but it’s #2 for gun deaths.

Where are TFB readers at on this list? And why does Vermont have more guns per person than Georgia?