Duty Arms Index
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What shotgun do police use most?

Short answer: the Remington 870 is the most common police shotgun in the index, at 162 of 183 agencies with a sourced shotgun (88.5%), ahead of the Mossberg 590 / 590A1 (9) and the Mossberg 500 (7). Remington 870 variants (870 Police, 870 Express) are counted together, as are the Mossberg 590 and 590A1. Or browse every shotgun model in the index.

Data coverage: Based on 183 agencies in the Duty Arms Index with a current, sourced duty shotgun entry (patrol long gun or authorized shotgun). Each agency counts once per model family. Counts include only current entries with a public source; agencies not yet in the index, or without a sourced entry for this item, are not counted, so treat shares as a picture of the Duty Arms Index, not of every U.S. agency. Data last updated Oct 10, 2026.

Police shotguns ranked by agency count

Share is of 183 agencies with a sourced shotgun. Example agencies link to their full loadouts.

#Model familyAgenciesFor example
1Remington 87012 gauge162 (88.5%)Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Federal Bureau of Prisons, California Highway Patrol
2Mossberg 590 / 590A112 gauge9 (4.9%)Braintree Police Department, Chatham County Police Department, Gilroy Police Department
3Mossberg 50012 gauge7 (3.8%)Carmel Police Department, Crescent City Police Department, El Dorado Police Department
4Benelli M412 gauge6 (3.3%)New Jersey State Police, Dallas Police Department, Los Angeles Police Department
5Benelli M1 Super 9012 gauge3 (1.6%)Eureka Police Department, Honolulu Police Department, Rialto Police Department
6Beretta 1301 Tactical12 gauge3 (1.6%)Michigan State Police, Dallas Police Department, Honolulu Police Department
7Remington 11-8712 gauge2 (1.1%)Honolulu Police Department, Roswell Police Department
8Benelli M212 gauge1 (0.5%)Albany Police Department (Oregon)
9Benelli M3 Super 9012 gauge1 (0.5%)Honolulu Police Department
10Benelli Nova Tactical12 gauge1 (0.5%)South Bethany Police Department
11Benelli SuperNova12 gauge1 (0.5%)Virginia State Police
12Beretta 1201 FP12 gauge1 (0.5%)Kensington Police Department
13Beretta A30012 gauge1 (0.5%)Metropolitan Nashville Police Department
14Kel-Tec KSG12 gauge1 (0.5%)Charleston County Sheriff's Office
15Smith & Wesson Model 300012 gauge1 (0.5%)Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office

By manufacturer

  1. Remington163 (89.1%)
  2. Mossberg16 (8.7%)
  3. Benelli12 (6.6%)
  4. Beretta5 (2.7%)
  5. Kel-Tec1 (0.5%)
  6. Smith & Wesson1 (0.5%)

By caliber / gauge

  1. 12 gauge183 (100%)

By agency type

The top shotguns for each kind of agency, with the share of that agency type.

Which agencies carry each

Remington 870 · 162 agencies

North Slope Borough Police Department (AK) · Fort Smith Police Department (AR) · Texarkana Police Department (Arkansas) (AR) · Paradise Valley Police Department (AZ) · Arcata Police Department (CA) · Auburn Police Department (CA) · Azusa Police Department (CA) · Bell Gardens Police Department (CA) · Belmont Police Department (CA) · Broadmoor Police Department (CA) · California City Police Department (CA) · California Highway Patrol (CA) · Colton Police Department (CA) · Corning Police Department (CA) · Corona Police Department (CA) · Costa Mesa Police Department (CA) · Covina Police Department (CA) · Cypress Police Department (CA) · Dinuba Police Department (CA) · Downey Police Department (CA) · El Centro Police Department (CA) · Eureka Police Department (CA) · Exeter Police Department (CA) · Folsom Police Department (CA) · Fulton-El Camino Park Police Department (CA) · Gilroy Police Department (CA) · Glendale Police Department (California) (CA) · Grass Valley Police Department (CA) · Grover Beach Police Department (CA) · Gustine Police Department (CA) · Hawthorne Police Department (CA) · Humboldt County Sheriff's Department (CA) · Imperial County Sheriff's Department (CA) · Imperial Police Department (CA) · Irwindale Police Department (CA) · Kerman Police Department (CA) · Kings County Sheriff's Department (CA) · Laguna Beach Police Department (CA) · Los Angeles Police Department (CA) · Los Banos Police Department (CA) · Mammoth Lakes Police Department (CA) · Manhattan Beach Police Department (CA) · Marina Department of Public Safety (CA) · Montebello Police Department (CA) · Monterey Park Police Department (CA) · Mt. Shasta Police Department (CA) · Oakdale Police Department (CA) · Oceanside Police Department (CA) · Paso Robles Police Department (CA) · Placentia Police Department (CA) · Pleasant Hill Police Department (CA) · Redondo Beach Police Department (CA) · Rialto Police Department (CA) · Ridgecrest Police Department (CA) · Riverside Police Department (CA) · San Fernando Police Department (CA) · San Gabriel Police Department (CA) · San Mateo Police Department (CA) · San Pablo Police Department (CA) · San Ramon Police Department (CA) · Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office (CA) · Selma Police Department (California) (CA) · Sonoma County Sheriff's Office (CA) · Sonora Police Department (CA) · South Pasadena Police Department (CA) · Suisun City Police Department (CA) · Sutter County Sheriff's Department (CA) · Taft Police Department (CA) · Tehachapi Police Department (CA) · Turlock Police Department (CA) · Vallejo Police Department (CA) · Westminster Police Department (CA) · Wheatland Police Department (CA) · Whittier Police Department (CA) · Yolo County Sheriff's Department (CA) · Yuba City Police Department (CA) · Colorado State University Police Department (CO) · Denver Police Department (CO) · Louisville Police Department (Colorado) (CO) · New Castle County Police Department (DE) · and 82 more

All Remington 870 agencies with sources →
Mossberg 590 / 590A1 · 9 agencies

Gilroy Police Department (CA) · Pomona Police Department (CA) · Santa Paula Police Department (CA) · Chatham County Police Department (GA) · Johns Creek Police Department (GA) · Braintree Police Department (MA) · Waltham Police Department (MA) · Charleston County Sheriff's Office (SC) · Lexington Police Department (Virginia) (VA)

All Mossberg 590 / 590A1 agencies with sources →
Mossberg 500 · 7 agencies

Carmel Police Department (CA) · Crescent City Police Department (CA) · El Dorado Police Department (KS) · Parma Heights Police Department (OH) · Scott Township Police Department (Allegheny County) (PA) · Texas State University Police Department (TX) · Lehi City Police Department (UT)

All Mossberg 500 agencies with sources →
Benelli M4 · 6 agencies

Los Angeles Police Department (CA) · Piedmont Police Department (California) (CA) · Ripon Police Department (CA) · Whittier Police Department (CA) · New Jersey State Police (NJ) · Dallas Police Department (TX)

All Benelli M4 agencies with sources →
Benelli M1 Super 90 · 3 agencies

Eureka Police Department (CA) · Rialto Police Department (CA) · Honolulu Police Department (HI)

All Benelli M1 Super 90 agencies with sources →
Beretta 1301 Tactical · 3 agencies

Honolulu Police Department (HI) · Michigan State Police (MI) · Dallas Police Department (TX)

All Beretta 1301 Tactical agencies with sources →

Questions

What shotgun do police use most?
The Remington 870 is the most common police shotgun in the Duty Arms Index: 162 of 183 agencies with a sourced shotgun (88.5%), ahead of the Mossberg 590 / 590A1 (9) and Mossberg 500 (7).
Which company makes the most police shotguns?
Remington: 163 of 183 agencies with a sourced shotgun issue one of its models, followed by Mossberg (16).
What caliber are police shotguns?
12 gauge at 183 of 183 agencies.