Guide

Magazine Capacity Laws by State 2026: Every Limit, Cited to the Statute

By Cole Harlan, EditorUpdated Oct 25, 2026How we verifyEditorial standards

Thirteen states and Washington, D.C. enforce a magazine capacity limit as of October 25, 2026. Two more states, Oregon and Virginia, have passed limits that aren't in effect: Oregon's has been pushed back to 2028 and Virginia's is blocked by a statewide injunction. The other 35 states have no statewide limit. Below is each limit, the statute it comes from, whether it bans possession or only sales, and the court cases that could change it.

Not legal advice. This table summarizes each state's statute as published by its legislature, or by Justia where we note that, as of the date above. Penalties, exemptions and transport rules have more detail than a table can hold. Read the linked section and ask a lawyer licensed in that state before you buy, carry or move with magazines.

The short answer

Ten rounds is the most common limit. California, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Washington and D.C. all draw the line at more than 10 rounds.
Some states set higher limits. Colorado's limit is 15 rounds. Delaware's is 17. Illinois and Vermont allow 10 in a long gun and 15 in a handgun. Hawaii's statute covers only detachable pistol magazines over 10 rounds.
Not every state bans possession. Maryland and Washington bar making, selling and receiving these magazines but don't make owning one a crime.
Grandfathering varies a lot. Colorado and Vermont protect magazines owned before their cutoff dates. California, Delaware and Rhode Island don't grandfather anything. Illinois and Massachusetts allow older magazines only in limited places.
Magazines are still a federal no-limit item. No federal law caps magazine capacity. The 1994 federal ban expired in 2004.

State-by-state table

State	Statute	Limit	Covers	Possession and grandfathering
California	Penal Code § 32310	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Making, importing, selling, buying and receiving are banned. Possession has also been banned since July 1, 2017, no matter when you got the magazine, so there's no grandfathering.
Colorado	C.R.S. 18-12-301, 18-12-302	More than 15 rounds. For shotguns, a tube holding more than 28 inches of shells, or a nontubular device holding more than 8 shells	Rifles, handguns and shotguns	Selling, transferring and possessing are a class 2 misdemeanor. Magazines owned on July 1, 2013 and kept in continuous possession are grandfathered.
Connecticut	CGS 53-202w, 53-202x	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Selling, buying and importing are a class D felony. Possession is a class A misdemeanor, or a class D felony for someone not eligible to possess. Magazines declared to the state by the deadlines (January 1, 2014, and January 1, 2024 for the later group) may be kept. Both declaration windows are closed.
Delaware	11 Del. C. §§ 1468, 1469	More than 17 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Making, selling, buying and possessing are all banned. A first offense of possession alone carries a $100 civil penalty. Holders of a Delaware concealed carry permit, police and the military are exempt. No grandfathering.
Hawaii	HRS § 134-8(c)	Detachable magazines over 10 rounds	Pistols only	Making, importing, selling, buying and possessing are banned. It's a misdemeanor, or a class C felony if the magazine is in a pistol.
Illinois	720 ILCS 5/24-1.10	More than 10 rounds for long guns, more than 15 for handguns	Rifles and handguns	Making, selling and buying are banned. Magazines owned before January 10, 2023 may be kept, but only in listed places, such as your own property or a range.
Maryland	Criminal Law § 4-305	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Making, selling, buying and receiving are banned. The statute doesn't ban possession.
Massachusetts	M.G.L. c. 140 § 131M; definition in § 121	More than 10 rounds or more than 5 shotgun shells	Rifles, handguns and shotguns	Possessing, owning, selling, transferring and importing are banned. Magazines lawfully possessed on September 13, 1994 may be kept, but only on your own property, on private property with the owner's permission, at a dealer or gunsmith, at a licensed range or match, or while traveling to those places. They can only be transferred to an heir, an out-of-state resident or a dealer. A first offense carries a $1,000 to $10,000 fine and/or 1 to 10 years.
New Jersey	N.J.S. 2C:39-3(j); definition in 2C:39-1(y) (Justia, unofficial copy)	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Possession is a fourth-degree crime. There are two exceptions. One covers a registered assault firearm whose magazine is used in Civilian Marksmanship Program matches. The other covers a firearm with a magazine of up to 15 rounds registered under 2C:39-20. The Third Circuit struck the law down in July 2026, but the ruling is on hold (see below), so the ban is still enforced.
New York	Penal Law § 265.02(8), § 265.36 (Justia, unofficial copy)	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Possession is a class D felony under § 265.02(8). Section 265.36 makes possessing a pre-September 13, 1994 magazine that was lawfully owned before 2013 a class A misdemeanor, so older magazines aren't grandfathered either.
Rhode Island	R.I. Gen. Laws 11-47.1-3; definition in 11-47.1-2	More than 10 rounds	Semiautomatic firearms	Making, selling, buying and possessing are banned, with a penalty of up to 5 years and/or $5,000. Owners had 180 days after June 20, 2022 to sell, surrender or modify their magazines. No grandfathering.
Vermont	13 V.S.A. § 4021	More than 10 rounds for long guns, more than 15 for handguns	Rifles and handguns	Making, selling, buying and possessing are banned. Magazines lawfully owned before April 11, 2018 are grandfathered.
Washington	RCW 9.41.370; definition in 9.41.010	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Making, importing, distributing and selling are a gross misdemeanor. The statute doesn't ban possession.
Washington, D.C.	D.C. Code § 7-2506.01	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Possessing, selling and transferring are banned.
Oregon (not in effect)	Ballot Measure 114 (2022), delayed by HB 4145 (2026)	More than 10 rounds	Rifles and handguns	Not enforced. HB 4145 pushes the magazine provisions back to January 1, 2028, and the state constitutional challenge, Arnold v. Kotek, is still pending in the Oregon Supreme Court.
Virginia (enjoined)	Va. Code § 18.2-309.1 (2026 Acts cc. 1106, 1107)	More than 15 rounds	Rifles and handguns	The law would make selling and buying a Class 1 misdemeanor, but not possession. A statewide preliminary injunction in Santolla v. Katz blocks enforcement for now (see below).
The other 35 states	None	No statewide limit	—	Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming have no statewide magazine capacity limit. The Giffords Law Center's survey, which favors these laws, lists the same 15 states plus D.C. that we list above. Check city and county rules where your state allows them.

Want every state on one page? Our 2026 State Gun Law Scorecard lines up magazine limits with suppressor and SBR laws for all 50 states and D.C., with a source for each cell.

Rows are based on each statute's text as of October 25, 2026. The "Covers" column describes which firearms a magazine counts for under the statute's definition. Statutes have more exemptions than shown here, mostly for police, the military and licensed dealers.

Court cases that could change these laws

These are the cases we've confirmed from court records or official sources as of October 25, 2026.

Supreme Court: Viramontes v. Cook County (No. 25-238) and Grant v. Higgins (No. 25-566). The Court granted review on June 30, 2026, consolidated the cases, and set argument for December 2, 2026. The question presented is about AR-15s and similar semiautomatic rifles, not magazines. But it's the first time the Court will rule on a ban of a commonly owned arm since Bruen, and the reasoning is likely to carry over to magazine cases. NRA-ILA expects a decision in June 2027.
Duncan v. Bonta (No. 25-198), California. The challenge to Penal Code § 32310 has a petition pending at the Supreme Court.
Gator's Custom Guns v. Washington (No. 25-153). This challenge to RCW 9.41.370 also has a petition pending at the Supreme Court.
Association of New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs v. Attorney General, New Jersey. On July 17, 2026, the full Third Circuit struck down New Jersey's magazine limit. On August 4, 2026, it stayed its mandate while the state seeks Supreme Court review, so the ban is still enforced.
Barnett v. Raoul, Illinois. On July 9, 2026, the Seventh Circuit (Nos. 24-3060 et al.) upheld Illinois's restrictions on AR-15s and 30-round rifle magazines and reversed the district court's injunction. The Seventh Circuit and the Third Circuit now disagree on magazine limits.
Santolla v. Katz, Virginia. In a July 7, 2026 letter opinion (Washington County Circuit Court No. CL26-1139), the court applied its preliminary injunction against the 2026 "assault firearm" and magazine laws statewide. On July 29, 2026, the case was stayed by agreement until the Supreme Court decides Viramontes and Grant, and the injunction stays in place.
Arnold v. Kotek, Oregon. The Oregon Supreme Court heard argument on November 6, 2025 and hasn't ruled. Measure 114's magazine provisions aren't in effect.
Massachusetts Question 9 (November 3, 2026). This is a referendum on the 2024 gun law, Chapter 135, which rewrote § 131M. A yes vote keeps the law and a no vote repeals it. The official summary says the law "clarifies ... the circumstances under which a person may continue to possess assault-style weapons and large capacity feeding devices they already own." We'll update this page after the results are certified.

Traveling with standard-capacity magazines

Federal law doesn't cover magazines in its interstate transport rule. 18 U.S.C. 926A protects transporting "firearms" between places where you can legally have them, and it doesn't mention magazines. If you drive through New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, California or another possession-ban state, an over-limit magazine is a state crime there. Leave those magazines at home or use magazines that meet that state's limit. Remember that Maryland and Washington ban sales, not possession, so buying across the border and bringing magazines back still violates their receipt and import rules.

Bottom line

Standard-capacity magazines of 15, 17 and 30 rounds are what most modern pistols and rifles ship with. In 35 states, no state law limits them. In the other 15 states and D.C., the rules range from a sales-only ban in Maryland and Washington to felony possession in New York. The Supreme Court's 2026–27 rifle case is the one to watch. For related rules, see our SBR laws by state, the suppressor buying guide with its state table, and the NFA lawsuits tracker.

Frequently asked questions

Which states have magazine capacity limits in 2026?

Thirteen states and D.C. enforce one: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii (pistol magazines only), Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Oregon's limit is delayed to 2028, and Virginia's is blocked by a statewide injunction.

What is the most common magazine limit?

Ten rounds. Colorado's limit is 15, Delaware's is 17, Virginia's would be 15, and Illinois and Vermont allow 15 in handguns but 10 in long guns.

Can I keep magazines I already owned?

It depends on the state. Colorado and Vermont grandfather magazines owned before their cutoff dates. Illinois and Massachusetts allow older magazines only in listed places. California, Delaware, New York and Rhode Island have no working grandfather clause. Maryland and Washington don't ban possession at all.

Is Duncan v. Bonta at the Supreme Court?

A petition in Duncan v. Bonta, No. 25-198, is pending. The case the Court has already agreed to hear is Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins, which is about semiautomatic rifles. Argument is set for December 2, 2026.

Is New Jersey's magazine ban still in effect after the Third Circuit ruling?

Yes. The en banc Third Circuit struck it down on July 17, 2026, but on August 4, 2026 it stayed its mandate while the state seeks Supreme Court review, so the law is still enforced.

Is there a federal magazine limit?

No. The 1994 federal limit on magazines over 10 rounds expired in 2004, and no federal limit has been enacted since.

Sources

Supplementary sources

News reports, advocacy groups, dealer practice and unofficial copies. They add context or report statements; the primary sources above control.