List of mass shootings in the United States in 2021
Updated: 5/20/2026, 8:13:00 PM Wikipedia source
This is a list of mass shootings in the United States that occurred in 2021. Mass shootings are incidents involving several victims of firearm-related violence. The precise inclusion criteria are disputed, and there is no broadly accepted definition. Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit research group, run by Tracy Holtan, that tracks shootings and their characteristics in the United States, defines a mass shooting as an incident in which four or more people, excluding the perpetrator(s), are shot in one location at roughly the same time. The Congressional Research Service narrows that definition, limiting it to "public mass shootings", defined by four or more victims killed, excluding any victims who survive. The Washington Post and Mother Jones use similar definitions, with the latter acknowledging that their definition "is a conservative measure of the problem", as many shootings with fewer fatalities occur. The crowdsourced Mass Shooting Tracker project has the most expansive definition of four or more shot in any incident, including the perpetrator in the victim inclusion criteria. A 2019 study of mass shootings published in the journal Injury Epidemiology recommended developing "a standard definition that considers both fatalities and nonfatalities to most appropriately convey the burden of mass shootings on gun violence." The authors of the study further suggested that "the definition of mass shooting should be four or more people, excluding the shooter, who are shot in a single event regardless of the motive, setting or number of deaths." As of December 2021, 693 (of which 303 resulted in zero deaths) fit the Mass Shooting Tracker project criterion, leaving 703 people dead and 2,842 injured, for a total of 3,545 total victims, some including the shooter(s).
Tables
| Date | Community | State | Dead | Injured | Total | Description |
| December 31 | Capitol Heights | Maryland | 0 | 4 | 4 | An adult and three juveniles were wounded in an evening shooting. |
| December 31 | Los Angeles (4) | California | 0 | 6 | 6 | Six shoppers were wounded at a grocery supermarket by two male shooters. |
| December 31 | Gulfport | Mississippi | 4 | 3 | 7 | During an outdoor New Year's Eve party, a physical fight started escalated to a shooting, with multiple people firing guns. |
| December 30 | Philadelphia (23) | Pennsylvania | 0 | 6 | 6 | Six shooters opened fire on a busy street with another group returning fire with six wounded including a suspected shooter. |
| December 30 | Kirksville | Missouri | 2 | 2 | 4 | An adult and infant were killed and two adults wounded in an afternoon shooting. |
| December 27 | Mobile (4) | Alabama | 1 | 3 | 4 | A man was killed and three others wounded at a local gas station. |
| December 27 | Denver (2) and Lakewood (2) | Colorado | 6 | 2 | 8 | 2021 Denver and Lakewood shootings: A gunman went on a shooting spree across multiple locations in the Denver metropolitan area before dying in a shootout with police. |
| December 27 | Youngstown (3) | Ohio | 1 | 3 | 4 | A man was killed and three others were wounded at a local apartment complex. |
| December 26 | Buffalo (3) | New York | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four adults were wounded inside a pop-up store. |
| December 26 | Clear Brook | Virginia | 1 | 4 | 5 | Four people were wounded at a rest stop, and the shooter fled before police arrived. The shooter was later found dead. |
| December 26 | Garland | Texas | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2021 Garland shooting: 13-year-old Abel Acosta went inside a convenience store and opened fire. Three teenagers were killed and a fourth person was wounded. |
| December 26 | Fayette | Mississippi | 0 | 7 | 7 | Seven people were wounded at a party in the early morning. An 18-year-old was later arrested. |
| December 26 | Philadelphia (22) | Pennsylvania | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four people were wounded in a drive by shooting in North Philadelphia. |
| December 25 | Lafayette | Louisiana | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four people were wounded near a Waffle House in the early morning. |
| December 24 | New York City (19) | New York | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four men were wounded outside a Brooklyn deli shortly before midnight. |
| December 24 | Roswell | Georgia | 1 | 3 | 4 | A woman was arrested after killing one and wounding three in a domestic incident at an apartment. |
| December 24 | Swissvale | Pennsylvania | 0 | 6 | 6 | Six people were found wounded in a local home, with one identified as the potential shooter. |
| December 19 | Brooklyn | Illinois | 1 | 3 | 4 | One man was killed and three others were wounded in a shooting across the street from a strip club. |
| December 17 | Baltimore (12) | Maryland | 1 | 3 | 4 | One person was killed and three wounded in Upton. |
| December 17 | Portsmouth | Virginia | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four adults were wounded in the early morning at a gentleman's club. |
| December 17 | Baltimore (11) | Maryland | 1 | 4 | 5 | A man was killed and four people wounded in Penn North. |
| December 16 | Troy (2) | Alabama | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four people were wounded in an afternoon shooting. |
| December 13 | Fresno (2) | California | 0 | 4 | 4 | Police were alerted to four wounded by gunfire after an argument escalated through a shotspotter alert. |
| December 13 | Philadelphia (21) | Pennsylvania | 0 | 4 | 4 | Four adults were wounded in Kensington, they were found by patrolling police. |
| December 13 | Durham (4) | North Carolina | 2 | 4 | 6 | Six people in an SUV were shot at in the early morning, causing the SUV to crash. Two adults were killed and four juveniles wounded. |
| December 12 | Bolton | Mississippi | 0 | 6 | 6 | Six people were wounded at local sports bar in the early morning. |
| December 12 | Tampa (3) | Florida | 0 | 5 | 5 | Five people were wounded in the early morning, a suspect was arrested days later. |
| December 12 | Baytown | Texas | 1 | 14 | 15 | One person was killed and fourteen others wounded in a drive-by shooting at a memorial vigil in Baytown for another shooting victim. |
| December 12 | Woodbridge | Virginia | 0 | 4 | 4 | Three security guards and a bystander were shot by a gunman at a nightclub. |
| December 11 | River Grove (2) | Illinois | 1 | 3 | 4 | Four adults were shot at a bowling alley at approximately 1 AM, killing a 23-year-old man. |
| December 10 | Lansing (2) | Michigan | 1 | 3 | 4 | Three teenagers and a baby were shot while in a car near an intersection, killing a 17-year-old girl. |
| December 10 | Orlando (4) | Florida | 0 | 5 | 5 | Five people were shot in a drive-by shooting in the Callahan neighborhood. |
| December 10 | Charlotte | North Carolina | 0 | 5 | 5 | Five people were shot in the Grier Heights neighborhood. |
| December 9 | Beloit | Wisconsin | 1 | 5 | 6 | Responding officers found one person killed and two wounded, with an additional two wounded found at the hospital. |
| December 8 | Milwaukee (6) | Wisconsin | 4 | 0 | 4 | A shooter killed two adults and one juvenile inside a house before killing themselves. The incident was domestic-related. |
| December 7 | Cidra | Puerto Rico | 5 | 1 | 6 | Five men were killed and another injured in a shootout outside a business. |
| December 6 | Philadelphia (20) | Pennsylvania | 0 | 4 | 4 | Three men and a teenager were wounded in Brewerytown. |
| December 5 | Detroit (12) | Michigan | 2 | 2 | 4 | Four men were shot by a gunman, two of whom succumbed to their injuries. |
| December 5 | El Paso (2) | Texas | 1 | 3 | 4 | A fight broke out in the parking lot of a bar, after a group was ejected. It escalated, with bystanders attempting to intervene. A man walked up and shot at the bystanders killing one and wounding three. |
| December 3 | Memphis (7) | Tennessee | 2 | 2 | 4 | Two teenagers were killed and a teenager and an infant were wounded in a drive-by shooting at a gas station. |
| December 2 | Elizabeth City | North Carolina | 3 | 3 | 6 | Responding officers found two adults and a child killed and three adults wounded. |
| December 1 | Kansas City (3) | Missouri | 2 | 2 | 4 | A man shot and injured his girlfriend, then went to an apartment and barricaded himself inside with his two children. The gunman shot both children, one fatally, before killing himself. |
| November 30 | Taylor | Texas | 4 | 0 | 4 | Police responded to a welfare check and found four people dead. A man had shot and killed two family members and a family friend inside his house before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. |
| November 30 | Oxford | Michigan | 4 | 7 | 11 | 2021 Oxford High School shooting: A 15-year-old student opened fire at Oxford High School initially killing three students and wounding seven others and a teacher, before being arrested. One of the wounded died a day later. The suspect was charged with four counts of murder and seven counts of attempted murder while his parents, who bought him the |
| November 30 | Rex | Georgia | 4 | 2 | 6 | Responding officers to a domestic incident were shot at by the suspect. The suspect had killed two women and wounded a child previously. An officer and the suspect were killed and another officer was wounded. |
| November 29 | Fort Wayne | Indiana | 4 | 0 | 4 | A 20-year-old man shot and killed his mother, father, and 15-year-old sister before killing himself at their home. |
| November 28 | Baltimore (10) | Maryland | 0 | 7 | 7 | Responding police found six adults and a teenager wounded in East Baltimore. |
| November 28 | Evanston (2) | Illinois | 1 | 4 | 5 | A teenager was killed and four others wounded at a gas station. |
| November 28 | Lancaster | California | 5 | 0 | 5 | A man killed his four children and his mother in law in their home. He turned himself in to police an hour later and was charged with five counts of murder. The shooter was given life without parole in 2024. |
| Month | Mass shootings | Total number killed (including the shooters) | Total number wounded (including the shooters) | Occurred at a school or university | Occurred at a place of worship |
| January | 35 | 23 | 145 | 0 | 0 |
| February | 45 | 52 | 159 | 0 | 0 |
| March | 48 | 70 | 188 | 0 | 0 |
| April | 53 | 72 | 210 | 0 | 0 |
| May | 69 | 77 | 312 | 0 | 0 |
| June | 79 | 75 | 336 | 0 | 0 |
| July | 84 | 77 | 345 | 0 | 0 |
| August | 59 | 45 | 239 | 1 | 0 |
| September | 70 | 45 | 268 | 0 | 0 |
| October | 69 | 85 | 320 | 1 | 0 |
| November | 48 | 51 | 175 | 1 | 0 |
| December | 39 | 36 | 160 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 698 | 705 | 2,830 | 3 | 0 |
| State | Number of shootings |
| IL | 87 |
| TX | 57 |
| CA | 45 |
| NY | 38 |
| PA | 33 |
| FL, LA, OH | 30 |
| MI | 26 |
| AL, GA | 23 |
| NC | 21 |
| MD | 18 |
| MO, SC, TN | 16 |
| VA | 15 |
| CO, IN, DC | 13 |
| NJ | 12 |
| MS, MN | 11 |
| WI | 10 |
| OR | 9 |
| AZ, DE, WA | 7 |
| AR, IA | 5 |
| KY, MA, NV | 4 |
| USVI | 3 |
| RI, CT, KS, OK | 2 |
| AK, ID, NE, NH, NM, SD, UT, WV | 1 |
References
- The FBI does not use the "mass shooting" term but uses a broader term, "mass murder" for four or more victims slain, in
- Including at least one of the perpetrators
- Including the perpetrator
- Including a pregnant woman
- Gun Violence Archivehttps://www.gunviolencearchive.org/reports/mass-shooting
- Washington Posthttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/10/04/the-squishy-definition-of-mass-shooting-complicates-media-coverage/
- Congressional Research Servicehttps://web.archive.org/web/20130909213006/http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R43004.pdf
- Gun Violence Archivehttp://www.gunviolencearchive.org/methodology
- Congressional Research Servicehttps://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R43004
- Washington Posthttps://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2018/national/mass-shootings-in-america/
- Mother Joneshttps://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/07/mass-shootings-map/
- Mass Shooting Trackerhttps://www.massshootingtracker.site/about
- Washington Posthttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2015/12/03/obamas-inconsistent-claim-on-the-frequency-of-mass-shootings-in-the-u-s-compared-to-other-countries/
- Injury Epidemiologyhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6889601
- The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/dec/13/what-counts-as-a-mass-shooting-the-dangerous-effects-of-varying-definitions
- Stanford Librarieshttps://library.stanford.edu/projects/mass-shootings-america
- Mass Shooting Trackerhttps://www.massshootingtracker.site/about
- Gun Violence Archivehttp://www.gunviolencearchive.org/methodology
- Voxhttps://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2015/12/4/9850758/mass-shooting-definition
- ABC Newshttps://abcnews.go.com/US/deadly-mass-shootings-month-2019/story?id=63449799