Expert gives reasons

Austrians are “arming up”: 42 percent more weapons

Almost 430,000 more pistols, rifles etc. are currently registered in Austria than six years ago and there are a fifth more gun owners, according to figures from the Ministry of the Interior. An expert gives reasons why more and more Austrians are taking up arms.

If we were talking about the military, we would probably casually say: Austrians are "arming up". While there were 301,420 gun owners as of January 1, 2018, there were already 360,277 at the start of 2024 - an increase of around 20 percent.