A home-defense gun has to be simple, reliable and reachable, and in Michigan since 2024 it also has to be stored right when kids are around.
A full-size 9mm with a light rail is the most common choice: 15 or more rounds, mild recoil and easy to shoot well under stress. Buying one from a dealer needs no License to Purchase; see buying a pistol in Michigan.
The pump shotgun has guarded Michigan farmhouses for a century. An 18.5 to 20-inch barrel is handy indoors, and the same gun can go to the duck blind or the deer woods with a longer barrel.
A full-size 9mm pistol is easier to handle in hallways and to keep in a quick-access safe. A pump 12-gauge hits harder and is simple to run, but it is long and kicks. Many households own one of each.
Since February 2024, if a minor is likely to be in the home you must keep firearms unloaded and locked, in a safe or with a locking device. Small biometric or keypad safes let you meet the law and still reach the gun quickly.
No. You need no permit to own a rifle or shotgun, or to keep a pistol at home. A pistol you buy from a dealer is recorded on the Pistol Sales Record; that is all the paperwork there is.
Michigan's Self-Defense Act (2006) removes the duty to retreat in places you have a legal right to be, when you honestly and reasonably believe deadly force is necessary to prevent death, great bodily harm or sexual assault. Talk to a Michigan attorney for how it applies to you.
General information, not legal advice. Current as of September 2026.