Sport shooting budget: what the first year and the following years cost
Published on · Updated on · 7 min read · Anthony Baillon
The first year of sport shooting costs from €474 with an air pistol to €2,058 with a 9mm pistol, firearm and safe included. In the following years, only the club, the certificate and ammunition remain: €229 to €924 a year. The caliber weighs more than the license in the gap.
At a glance
| Firearm | First year | Following years |
|---|---|---|
| 10 m air pistol | €474 to €664 | €229 to €334 |
| .22 LR pistol | €1,232 to €1,611 | €507 to €612 |
| 9mm pistol | €1,688 to €2,058 | €819 to €924 |
New firearm, safe in Category B and 200 rounds a month included, prices surveyed on 24 September 2026.
- Club and license: €165 to €320 the first year, €165 to €270 afterwards.
- Ammunition: €0.13 a round in .22 LR by the case, €0.26 in 9mm, so a €312 gap a year.
First-year budget: €474 to €2,058 depending on the firearm
The budget per year, by firearm
Low and high end of the range. Assumptions: license and club €165 to €320 the first year, €165 to €270 afterwards; medical certificate €30 a year; ear defenders €15 to €50 the first year; 200 rounds a month; safe €115 to €289 in Category B. Prices surveyed on 24 September 2026.
Firearm at the surveyed new price: €230 for a Weihrauch HW40 PCA12, €595 to €610 for a Glock 44 or a Buck Mark Standard URX1213, €739 to €745 for a Glock 17 Gen51314. Ammunition: €0.014 a pellet, €0.13 a .22 LR round by the case of 400 to 500, €0.26 a 9mm FMJ round5678.
View the data
| Item | Air pistol | .22 LR | 9mm |
|---|---|---|---|
| License and club, year 1 | €165 – €320 | €165 – €320 | €165 – €320 |
| Medical certificate | €30 | €30 | €30 |
| Ear defenders | €15 – €50 | €15 – €50 | €15 – €50 |
| New firearm | €230 | €595 – €610 | €739 – €745 |
| Safe | not applicable | €115 – €289 | €115 – €289 |
| 2,400 rounds a year | €34 | €312 | €624 |
| First year | €474 – €664 | €1,232 – €1,611 | €1,688 – €2,058 |
| License and club, afterwards | €165 – €270 | €165 – €270 | €165 – €270 |
| Following years | €229 – €334 | €507 – €612 | €819 – €924 |
The gap comes down to two items. The firearm first: €230 for an entry-level air pistol, €595 to €610 for a .22 LR, €739 to €745 for a Glock 17 Gen5121314. Then the safe, compulsory for any Category B firearm, .22 LR included1011.
The choice of firearm can be prepared with our guide to the first sport shooting pistol, which also compares the .22 LR versions of 9mm pistols.
Following years: €229 to €924 a year, firearm paid for
The firearm, the safe and the ear defenders are not bought again. Three items come back every year:
- License and club: €165 to €270 on renewal, with no joining fee12.
- Medical certificate: about €304.
- Ammunition: €34 with an air pistol, €312 in .22 LR, €624 in 9mm, at 200 rounds a month.
Ammunition then becomes the largest item with a firearm: 68 to 76% of the yearly budget in 9mm.
License and club: €165 to €320, then €165 to €270 a year
The club invoices the federal license, insurance and its subscription as a single amount. At USO Tir, an adult pays €165, license and insurance included1. At Tir Club Alpin, a new shooter pays €318, joining fee and safety training included, then €268 on renewal2.
Within that amount, the federal share is €69 for an adult and €49 for a young shooter3. The license runs from 1 September to 31 August3: the spend falls at the start of the school year, not in January. Renewal is detailed in our guide to renewing your FFTir license.
Medical certificate: about €30 every year
The marker is the agreed fee for a general practice consultation, €30 at 1 January 20264. The certificate of no contraindication is not reimbursed by French health insurance: it is not a treatment act17. The documents required are in our article on the FFTir medical certificate.
Ammunition: €34 to €624 a year at 200 rounds a month
The price per round depends on caliber and packaging.
| Ammunition | Packaging | Price per round |
|---|---|---|
| 4.5 mm pellets | Box of 500 | €0.011 to €0.0187 |
| .22 LR | Case of 400 to 500 | €0.11 to €0.1556 |
| .22 LR | Box of 50 | €0.11 to €0.2056 |
| 9mm FMJ | Box of 50 or case of 1,000 | €0.26 to €0.3289 |
The budget uses €0.13 a round of .22 LR by the case and €0.26 a round of 9mm FMJ, the usual practice prices. By the box of 50, the same .22 LR costs more: €8.99 for 50 CCI Standard Velocity, against €75.90 for 500 at the same dealer, so €0.18 against €0.15 a round5.
Two ceilings frame this item. 9mm, a Category B round, is bought within a limit of 3,000 rounds per firearm per twelve-month period15. .22 LR, in Category C, escapes that quota; without the corresponding firearm, holding it is limited to 500 rounds16. The detail is in our guide to firearm and ammunition quotas, and the gap between calibers in our comparison 9mm or .22 LR.
Firearm and safe: a purchase possible in the first year
An air pistol of 2 to 20 joules is in Category D: it can be bought without formality11. Every handgun, .22 LR included, is in Category B and requires an authorization11:
- Three controlled sessions, at least two months apart, within the last twelve months18.
- Processing of the application, three months at most; without an answer, it is a refusal19.
That makes four to seven months between the license and the purchase: the firearm therefore enters the first year's budget. The file is detailed in our guide to the Category B authorization.
A safe, strong cabinet or strongroom is compulsory in Category B10. A handgun safe costs €115 to €2892021. Add, in the first year, passive ear defenders at €15 to €502223.
Buying a firearm or shooting club guns: pros and cons
Buying your own firearm
Pros
- A firearm always available, set up for your hand, for practice as for competition.
- Category B ammunition bought from a gun shop, within the limit of 3,000 per firearm per year15.
Shooting the club's firearms
Pros
- No purchase: at USO Tir, use of the club's firearms is included in the subscription1.
- Several models to try before choosing your own.
Cons
- Ammunition bought from the club, at a price at least equal to its purchase price, and fired on site only24.
- A shared firearm, available according to the club's time slots.
Budget by goal: from €474 with air to €2,058 in 9mm
What you gain, what you give up
To spend the least, the air pistol costs €474 to €664 the first year and can be bought straight away. In return, it only serves at 10 meters.
For precision at 25 and 50 meters, the .22 LR pistol costs €1,232 to €1,611 the first year, then €507 to €612 a year. In return, it gives access neither to practical shooting nor to service-firearm shooting (TAR).
For practical shooting or TAR, 9mm costs €1,688 to €2,058 the first year, then €819 to €924 a year: €312 more ammunition every year than in .22 LR.
When the goal is not set, the club's firearms postpone the purchase without closing any event.
Three misconceptions about the sport shooting budget
- "The license costs €69." That is the federal share3. The club charges €165 to €320 the first year, license, insurance and subscription included12.
- "No firearm can be bought in the first year." Three sessions two months apart, then three months of processing at most, place the purchase between the fourth and the seventh month1819.
- "The safe must be certified." The code requires safes or strong cabinets « adaptés au type et au nombre de matériels détenus » [suited to the type and number of items held], with no standard imposed10.
Cutting the first-year budget: three levers
- The Pass'Sport: an immediate €50 reduction on registration in 2026-2027, until 31 December 2026, for eligible young people and students25.
- The case rather than the box in .22 LR: €0.15 a round instead of €0.18 on the same reference5.
- The club's firearms until the discipline is chosen, which takes the firearm and the safe out of the first year.
Sources 25 references
Regulatory texts were reread on Légifrance and service-public.gouv.fr in their version in force; federal and club amounts come from their pages published for the 2026-2027 season; prices from dated surveys at several French dealers, flagged ⚠️ as commercial data. Click a note call in the text to highlight the corresponding source.
- USO Tir, FFTir-affiliated club — tarifs, saison 2026-2027 (in French), reread on 24 September 2026: adult men €165, women €155, young shooters €130 and €120; « Les tarifs de l'USO Tir comprennent le coût de la licence fédérale, l'assurance et la cotisation à l'USO Tir » [USO Tir fees include the federal licence, insurance and the USO Tir subscription]; membership gives access to the club's firearms.
- Tir Club Alpin — inscription et tarifs (in French), season from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027, reread on 24 September 2026: renewal €268, new shooter €318 — subscription, FFTir federal licence, joining fee and safety rules training, one-hour introduction.
- Fédération française de tir — s'inscrire à la FFTir (in French): federal share adult €69, young shooter €49; licence « valable du 1er septembre au 31 août de l'année suivante » [valid from 1 September to 31 August of the following year].
- Assurance maladie — tarifs conventionnels des médecins généralistes et spécialistes (in French), page updated 17 March 2026: general practice consultation (G), €30.00 at 1 January 2026.
- Armurerie Loisir — balles .22 LR (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: boxes of 50 — Fiocchi TT Soft €5.65, Geco €6.99, Aguila Super Extra €6.99, CCI Blazer €7.99, Winchester T22 €7.99, CCI Standard Velocity €8.99, ELEY Club €9.90; cases — Magtech 500 €54.90, Winchester M22 500 €59.90, Remington Thunderbolt 500 €59.90, CCI Blazer 500 €74.90, CCI Standard Velocity 500 €75.90. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Armurerie de la Bourse — munitions de catégorie C (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: boxes of 50 — Aguila Standard SP €5.50, Sellier & Bellot Club €6.00, Geco €7.00, Remington Thunderbolt €7.00, CCI Standard €8.00, CCI Blazer €8.00, RWS Pistol Match €10.00, ELEY Club €12.00; Winchester M22 €45.00 per 400, SK Magazine €89.00 per 500. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Armurerie Loisir — plombs 4,5 mm (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: boxes of 500 from €5.50 (Swiss Arms pointed) to €8.99 (Geco Superpoint), including H&N Excite Econ II €6.99; RWS Meisterkugeln €10.99 and Norma S-Target Match €11.10 for match. ⚠️ Commercial data surveyed at a single dealer.
- Armurerie Centrale — munitions 9x19 (in French), survey of 24 September 2026 from the product pages: Fiocchi FMJ 124 grains €12.90 per 50, STV Scorpio FMJ 124 grains €13.90 per 50, Geco FMJ 124 grains €14.49, Norma Range & Training 115 grains €14.90, Winchester Target & Practice €15.90; STV Scorpio FMJ €259.00 per 1,000. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Armurerie de la Bourse — munitions de catégorie B (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: 9x19 FMJ — Norma 115 grains €15.00 per 50, Winchester 124 grains €15.00, MFS 124 grains €15.00, Fiocchi, Magtech, Sellier & Bellot 124 grains €16.00; STV Scorpio 123 grains €280.00 for a case of 1,000. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Légifrance — article R314-3 du code de la sécurité intérieure (in French), in force since 11 May 2017: Category A and B firearms kept « dans des coffres-forts ou des armoires fortes adaptés au type et au nombre de matériels détenus » [in safes or strong cabinets suited to the type and number of items held], or in a strongroom with an armored door and barred openings. No technical standard appears in it.
- Légifrance — article R311-2 du code de la sécurité intérieure (in French), version in force since 7 September 2025: Category B, handguns; Category D, air guns from 2 to 20 joules.
- Armurerie Auxerre — surveys of 24 September 2026 (in French): Weihrauch HW40 PCA air pistol €229.90; Browning Buck Mark Standard URX .22 LR €609.90. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Armurerie de la Bourse — armes de poing de catégorie B (in French), survey of 24 September 2026, new prices: Glock 44 Gen5 FS .22 LR €595.00, Browning Buck Mark Standard URX SE MS .22 LR €599.00, Glock 17 Gen5 FS €745.00. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- GunMarket — pistolet Glock 17 Gen5 cal. 9x19 (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: €739.00. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Légifrance — article R312-47 du code de la sécurité intérieure (in French), in force since 1 January 2024: "3 000 cartouches par arme au titre du 2° de l'article R. 312-40" [3,000 rounds per firearm under 2° of article R. 312-40], acquired by the firearm's holder, per twelve-month period.
- Légifrance — articles R312-60 à R312-63 du code de la sécurité intérieure (in French): « Nul ne peut détenir plus de 500 munitions classées dans les 6°, 7° et 8° de la catégorie C sans détenir l'arme correspondante » [no one may hold more than 500 rounds classified in 6°, 7° and 8° of Category C without holding the corresponding firearm] (R312-63).
- Sénat — question écrite n° 02063 (in French), answer from the ministry of sport published in the JO Sénat of 5 December 2024: the certificate of no contraindication « est un acte de prévention qui ne fait pas partie du panier de soins établi par l'assurance maladie et de ce fait ne doit pas être pris en charge par la sécurité sociale » [is a prevention act outside the health insurance basket of care and is therefore not covered by social security].
- Légifrance — arrêté du 28 avril 2020 relatif aux avis favorables et aux attestations délivrés par les fédérations (in French), article 3: « la participation du tireur, au cours des douze mois précédant sa demande, à trois séances contrôlées de pratique du tir, espacées d'au moins deux mois » [the shooter's participation, during the twelve months before the application, in three controlled shooting sessions at least two months apart].
- Service-public.gouv.fr — armes de catégorie B pour un tireur sportif (in French), factsheet F2250 checked on 20 March 2025: online application on the SIA for an adult; « en l'absence de réponse dans un délai de 3 mois à partir de la date de réception de votre demande, cela signifie que votre demande est refusée » [without an answer within 3 months of receipt, the application is refused]; storage in a safe, strong cabinet or strongroom.
- Armurerie Loisir — coffres-forts (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: Fortify Delta 1 handgun safe €115.00, Fortify SC6 €249.00, Infac handgun safe €259.00. ⚠️ Commercial data. Safepro24 France — coffres-forts pour armes de poing (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: Profirst NY 2 €289.00, the ceiling used across the site.
- 1001coffres — coffres-forts pour arme de poing (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: Rottner Gun Box €119.18, Infac Fortify Delta 1 €120.65. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Armurerie Loisir — protections auditives (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: passive ear defenders Real Hunter €14.90, 3M Peltor H4A €24.90, Browning Compact €29.99, Peltor Optime I €39.90, Optime III €49.90; electronic ear defenders from €79.90. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Armurerie de la Bourse — casque antibruit Peltor Optime III (in French), survey of 24 September 2026: €40.00. ⚠️ Commercial data.
- Légifrance — article R312-66 du code de la sécurité intérieure (in French), in force since 6 July 2023: sale of ammunition by associations « à un prix au moins égal au prix d'achat » [at a price at least equal to the purchase price], for use « exclusivement dans l'enceinte du stand de tir déclaré » [exclusively within the declared shooting range].
- Ministère des sports — pass Sport (in French), reread on 24 September 2026: 2026-2027 campaign « ouverte jusqu'au 31 décembre 2026 » [open until 31 December 2026], "50€ de réduction immédiate sur l'inscription sportive" [€50 immediate reduction on sports registration]; young people aged 6 to 17 from a household with a family quotient of €699 or less, recipients of the AEEH aged 6 to 19 and of the AAH aged 16 to 30, grant-holding students up to 28.
The day's prices prevail. Club fees and dealer prices change from one season to the next: the club's fee schedule, the day's price and the version in force of the texts on Légifrance are worth checking before any purchase.
Frequently asked questions
How much does sport shooting cost in the first year?
€474 to €664 with an air pistol, €1,232 to €1,611 with a .22 LR pistol and €1,688 to €2,058 with a 9mm pistol, firearm, safe and 200 rounds a month included. Without buying a firearm, using the club's, the first year comes down to the license, the certificate, ear defenders and ammunition.
How much does sport shooting cost in the following years?
The firearm, safe and ear defenders are already paid for: what remains is the license and club, €165 to €270 on renewal, the medical certificate, about €30, and ammunition. At 200 rounds a month, that makes €229 to €334 a year with an air pistol, €507 to €612 in .22 LR and €819 to €924 in 9mm.
What does a shooting license cost?
The federal share is €69 for an adult and €49 for a young shooter. The club invoices it with its subscription, insurance and, in the first year, often a joining fee: €165 to €320 the first year, €165 to €270 on renewal, depending on the club. The license runs from 1 September to 31 August.
Can you buy a firearm in the first year?
Yes, after four to seven months of license for a Category B firearm. Three controlled sessions at least two months apart are required, then the processing of the application, which takes three months at most. An air pistol of 2 to 20 joules, in Category D, can be bought straight away.
How much does ammunition cost over a year?
At 200 rounds a month, so 2,400 a year: about €34 in pellets, €312 in .22 LR bought by the case of 400 to 500, at €0.13 a round, and €624 in 9mm FMJ, at €0.26. By the box of 50, .22 LR costs €0.11 to €0.20 a round depending on the brand.
Does the Pass'Sport reduce a shooting club's fee?
For the 2026-2027 season, it gives an immediate €50 reduction on registration, until 31 December 2026. It covers 6 to 17-year-olds from a household whose family quotient does not exceed €699, some young people with disabilities and grant-holding students up to 28.