How to Buy a Gun Online: FFL Transfers Explained (and Where to Find What Your Local Shop Doesn't Have)
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TL;DR
Buying a gun online isn’t like buying anything else you’ve ordered — federal law requires it ship to a licensed dealer (an FFL) near you, not to your front door, and you complete the background check and paperwork in person when you pick it up. Once you understand that one extra step, online buying opens up a much bigger selection than any single local shop carries — especially for used, discontinued, or hard-to-find models. Guns.com runs both fixed-price listings and auction-style sales across new and used inventory, which makes it a strong pick specifically for the gun your local shop doesn’t stock, rather than a replacement for buying new mainstream models at a retailer like Cabela’s or PSA.
The one thing that makes buying a gun online different
Every other online purchase ships straight to you. A firearm can’t — federal law requires it to ship to a Federal Firearms License (FFL) holder, typically a local gun shop or a dedicated transfer service, where you complete the required background check (a NICS check via Form 4473) and pick it up in person. The seller ships to your chosen FFL, the FFL receives it, you show up with ID, fill out the paperwork, pass the check, and walk out with the gun.
This isn’t unique to any one retailer — it’s true everywhere online, including on Gun Beaver’s own partner sites. The reason it’s worth explaining here specifically is that it’s the first thing that trips up someone buying online for the first time, and once you understand it, “buying a gun online” stops feeling complicated.
The steps, in order
- Find your gun and complete the purchase online, same as any other online order.
- Choose (or confirm) your receiving FFL. Many online sellers let you search for FFLs near you at checkout; if you already have a local shop you trust, call ahead and confirm their transfer fee (typically $20-$60, though it varies by shop and by state).
- The seller ships to the FFL, not to you. This is the one hard rule — there’s no way around it for a complete firearm.
- Pick it up in person. Bring valid ID, complete Form 4473, and pass the same NICS background check you’d go through buying in-store. Wait times vary by state — some are instant, some have a mandatory waiting period.
- Pay the transfer fee to the FFL, separate from what you paid the seller. This is the shop’s fee for handling the paperwork and liability, not an add-on charge from the online seller.
Why buy online instead of just walking into a shop
Your local shop’s inventory is limited to what they’ve chosen to stock and what’s currently available from their distributors. Online marketplaces aggregate inventory from many sellers — other dealers, individual consignors, and sometimes manufacturer overstock — which means dramatically more selection, especially for:
- Discontinued or older models that aren’t in current production runs
- Used guns at a range of condition and price points, not just whatever trade-ins your local shop happens to have on the shelf
- Less common calibers or configurations that a shop with limited shelf space won’t stock speculatively
This is where a marketplace-style retailer earns its place next to the mainstream new-inventory retailers already covered elsewhere on this site.
Where Guns.com fits specifically
Guns.com runs both fixed-price listings and auction-style sales, spanning new and used firearms from a network of dealers rather than a single store’s inventory. That combination — auction pricing on some listings, straight buy-it-now on others — makes it worth checking specifically when you’re after:
- A used gun where you want to see what real market pricing looks like (auction listings show you what buyers are actually paying, not just an asking price)
- A specific model that’s been discontinued or is between production runs
- A wider spread of condition grades on a used gun than a single local shop’s trade-in counter will ever have
It’s a poor fit if you’re just buying a current-production, widely- stocked gun — a new PSA AR-15 or a mainstream Cabela’s in-stock item is going to be simpler and often cheaper to just buy direct.
Comparison: local shop vs. Guns.com vs. mainstream online retailer
| Local gun shop | Guns.com (marketplace) | Mainstream retailer (Cabela’s, PSA, etc.) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Selection | Limited to what they stock | Wide — aggregated from many sellers, new and used | Wide but new-production only |
| Best for | Trying before buying, immediate pickup | Used, discontinued, or hard-to-find models | Current-production new guns, in-stock and predictable |
| Pricing model | Fixed | Fixed-price and auction-style listings | Fixed |
| Transfer required | No — buy and walk out same day | Yes — ships to your FFL | Yes — ships to your FFL |
| Typical use case | You know exactly what you want and it’s in stock nearby | You’re hunting for something specific or want to see real used-market pricing | You want a new, current-model gun without hunting |
FAQ
Is buying a gun online legal? Yes, in every state, subject to the same background check and paperwork requirements as an in-store purchase — the transaction is completed in person at your chosen FFL, not online. State-level rules on waiting periods and additional permits still apply the same way they would buying locally.
How much does an FFL transfer cost? Typically $20-$60, set by the individual FFL holder, not by the online seller. Call ahead to confirm — some shops charge more for handguns than long guns, and pricing varies significantly by region.
Can I choose any FFL, or does it have to be my closest one? Any FFL holder willing to accept transfers works — it doesn’t have to be your closest shop. Some shooters use a dedicated transfer-only FFL specifically because the fees are lower than a full retail gun shop’s.
Is auction-style pricing actually cheaper than a fixed listing? Not always — it depends on demand for that specific gun at that specific time. The advantage of an auction format isn’t guaranteed savings, it’s transparency: you can see what similar guns have actually sold for recently, which is harder to gauge from a single fixed asking price.
What if the gun doesn’t match the listing when it arrives at my FFL? Reputable marketplaces have a return/dispute process for exactly this situation — confirm the specific seller’s or platform’s policy before bidding or buying, especially on used guns where condition grading can be subjective.
The Bottom Line
Buying a gun online isn’t more complicated than buying anything else — it just has one extra step (the FFL transfer) that exists because federal law requires it, not because the seller is making things difficult. Once you’re comfortable with that step, it opens up a much bigger selection than any single shop can carry. For a new, current-production gun, your local shop or a mainstream retailer is often simpler. For something used, discontinued, or hard to track down, a marketplace like Guns.com — with both fixed-price and auction listings pulled from a wide network of sellers — is the better place to look.
