Gun Safe Sizes: Dimensions, Capacity and What Size You Need

Short answer: Gun safe sizes fall into rough classes rather than a standard. Most full-size gun safes are about 59 to 61 in tall, with 66 in and 72 in models for bigger collections; widths run from about 18 to 42 in and depths from about 16 to 28 in. Interiors are several inches smaller each way. The gun count on the door is an estimate that assumes unscoped guns, so size from interior dimensions, your longest gun, and Liberty Safe's advice: buy the largest safe you can afford.

This guide covers gun safe dimensions and capacity. For the weight that comes with each size, see how much does a gun safe weigh. To browse models with their listed sizes, start at the gun safes page.

Gun safe sizes by class: manufacturer examples

There's no standard gun safe size, so here's what manufacturers actually list. Dimensions are height x width x depth in inches, exterior first, from each maker's own product page.

Class	Example model	Exterior (in)	Interior (in)	Long guns per maker
Gun cabinet	Stack-On GCB-10	53 x 17 x 13.5	not listed	up to 10
Compact	Liberty Centurion 12	59.5 x 18.25 x 16	56 x 16.25 x 10	12
Medium	Liberty Centurion 24	59.5 x 28.25 x 20	56 x 26.25 x 13.5	24
Medium	Liberty Colonial 23	60.5 x 30 x 22	57 x 26 x 14	25
Full-size	Browning Hunter 33	60 x 29.5 x 24.5	54.5 x 26 x 17	33 + 8 handguns
Full-size	Winchester Bandit 31	60 x 40 x 22	57.5 x 38 x 14	up to 40
Full-size	Cannon American Eagle 59	60 x 34 x 24	not listed	50 + 9 handguns
Tall	Liberty Lincoln 40	66.5 x 36 x 27.5	61 x 31 x 19.5	35
Tall	Liberty Presidential 50	72.5 x 42.25 x 27.75	65 x 36 x 16.5	39
Extra-large	Winchester Ranger 66	72 x 55 x 29	68.5 x 52.5 x 21	up to 70
Vault-style	Fort Knox Protector Vault	72 x 61 x 27	not listed	not listed

Fort Knox says its gun safes come in ten sizes, "from the compact 4024 up to the 7261XD with 100 cubic feet." Model numbers like that often encode the height and width. Gun counts in model names don't encode anything reliable, as the next section shows.

Gun safe capacity: the number on the door versus the interior

Gun capacity is the most generous figure on any gun safe page. The manufacturers say so themselves, in smaller type.

• Cannon Safe: "Advertised gun capacity is a guide." Scopes, pistol grips, accessories and interior shelving all change how many guns fit.
• Liberty Safe: its product pages say "Gun capacity may vary depending upon size of guns and scopes."

The model names make the point without help. Liberty's Lincoln 40 holds 35 long guns per Liberty's own spec table. The Presidential 50 holds 39. Winchester's Bandit 31 is listed for "up to 40" long guns. The number in the name is a size label, not a count.

The rifles were real. The capacity was theoretical.

This is the one opinion I'll press on every reader: buy bigger than the box says. Liberty's sizing article puts it in its own words — buyers should "select the largest safe they can afford," because the interior "tends to fill up more quickly than you might expect." Its sizing guide suggests at least 20 to 30 percent more space than you need today.

Rifle safe dimensions: interior height is the first check

For long guns, interior height decides everything else. Liberty's sizing article says a smaller safe should be "tall enough to house your longest rifle or shotgun."

The interiors in the table above run from 54.5 in (Browning Hunter 33) to 68.5 in (Winchester Ranger 66). Most 59- to 61-in safes give about 54 to 57 in inside. Stack-On's 8-gun cabinet is listed for long guns up to 54 in tall.

Measure your longest gun with any optic or muzzle device fitted, then compare it to the interior height. Not the exterior. The walls, door and shelving take their share first.

Depth matters for scopes. Interior depth runs from 10 in on the Centurion 12 to 20 in on the Colonial 50 in Liberty's range. A scoped rifle in a 10-in-deep interior is a tight fit, which is why Stack-On mentions scope standoffs on its cabinet.

Medium size gun safe vs. full-size gun safe

There's no official boundary, but manufacturer lineups cluster.

Medium size gun safes are roughly 59 to 61 in tall and 24 to 30 in wide, with interiors around 13 to 14 in deep. Liberty's Centurion 24 and Colonial 23 are examples. They fit in most closets and through most doorways.

Full-size gun safes keep the same height but widen to 36 to 42 in, and often deepen to 22 to 28 in. Liberty's Fatboy models are 42 in wide, Winchester's Bandit 31 is 40 in wide, and Cannon's American Eagle 59 is 34 in wide and 24 in deep.

Gun safes by height split into three common tiers in the pages we read: about 60 in, about 66 in (Liberty's Lincoln 40 and Presidential 40), and about 72 in (Liberty's 50-size models, Winchester's Ranger 66, Fort Knox's 72-in models). Check ceiling height in the room, and on the route there, before choosing a 72-in safe.

What size safe do I need for documents and valuables

Not every safe is for long guns. Liberty's sizing guide sorts safes by interior volume:

• Small: 0.5 to 1.5 cu ft
• Medium: 1.5 to 4.0 cu ft
• Large: 4.0 to 25+ cu ft

It notes that "the usable storage space is the internal dimension, which is always smaller." A medium size "fireproof" safe — fire-resistant, in practice — in those terms is something like SentrySafe's SFW205GQC: 2 cu ft, with an interior of 19.6 x 14.8 x 11.9 in, per SentrySafe.

Wall safe dimensions: built around the studs

Wall safes are sized by the wall. V-Line designs its Tactical Closet Vault to fit between studs 16 in on center, with a body of 53 x 14.5 x 5.75 in. Its Quick Vault XL is 14 x 28 x 3.5 in, with an interior depth of 2-3/4 in. Barska lists its AX12408 wall safe at 31.5 x 15.5 x 4 in.

That depth is the limit. A wall safe holds handguns, documents and small valuables. Long guns need a freestanding safe or a cabinet like V-Line's closet model.

Gun safe dimensions you forget to measure

The listed exterior is not the space the safe needs.

• Handle and hinges. Winchester's Bandit page says to add 1.5 in of depth for handle and hinges. Liberty's Fatboy page says to add 3 in for the handle.
• Power. Liberty adds 1/4 in of depth for its outlet kit and 1.5 in for a plug.
• Door swing. Liberty's sizing guide says to make sure the door has room to swing fully open.
• The route. Cannon says to measure doorways, hallways, staircases and turns along the delivery path.

(I keep a tape measure next to my folder of spec sheets. They argue less than you'd think.)

Here's the catch: bigger outside doesn't always mean bigger inside

Thick walls take their space from the inside. Liberty's Presidential 25 and Lincoln 25 have nearly the same exterior: 60.5 x 30.25 x 24.75 in versus 60.5 x 30 x 24 in. Inside, the Presidential is 53 x 23.5 x 14 in and the Lincoln is 55 x 25 x 15 in. Liberty lists 22 long guns for the first and 27 for the second.

So two safes that fill the same closet can hold different collections. Compare interiors, always, and treat the gun count as the manufacturer's best case.

Skip it if: when you don't need a bigger gun safe

• The safe won't fit the route. A safe that can't get through the door is the wrong size, whatever it holds.
• The floor can't carry the next size up. See where to put a gun safe for upper floors and joists.
• You only store handguns. A smaller safe or a wall safe may do the job without the floor space.
• You'd be paying for size instead of rating. If fire protection matters, a smaller safe with a better rating can beat a bigger one without.

That's the measuring job. Measure your longest gun, your doorway and your ceiling, compare them to interior dimensions, then buy one size up from what the door says. Once it's in place, bolt it down, and count the guns again in a year.