Since we love our guns and take child safety very, very seriously here, we felt compelled to write this article. A lot of people in this world have witnessed the havoc an unintentional shooting can wreak on any family, including my own. While time does help heal all wounds, it’s impossible to forget the mistakes parents whose children suffered from unintentional shootings made in the past. In this guide, we share five of the best gun safes for child safety currently on the market. The aim of this article is to help prevent child gun accidents and help you make the most informed buying decision to protect your family.
Before we go over the specs of each safe, it’s important to know that every year hundreds of children are involved in unintentional shootings that cause harm to themselves and others, sometimes leading to death. The truly sad part is that millions of our fellow Americans house guns that are both loaded and unlocked. For these reasons, we’re very, very glad you’re here right now because every gun owner should secure his or her weapon(s) with the right safe, especially parents.
So, before this article gets too heavy, let’s jump to the fun part. We’ll start with an overview of the safes before going over the reviews of each model to take a closer look at what each safe offers.
Top 5 Gun Safes for Child Safety
| Safe | Description |
| #1) Fort Knox PB1 Original Pistol Box
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| #2) V-Line BRUTE Heavy Duty Handgun Safe with Quick-Access Lock
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| #3) New and Improved E.M.P Proof Steelwater Extreme Duty 22-Gun Safe
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| #4) MonsterVault Low Profile Safe
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| #5) Verifi Smart.Safe. Biometric Gun Safe
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Best Child-Proof Gun Safe Reviews
This is exciting stuff, right? These are some of the most secure gun safes on the market, what’s not to love? When choosing a child-proof gun safe for your home, it’s clearly important to consider what type of firearms you’re storing. For long gun owners, a true large-capacity, high-security gun safe is the ideal choice with children in the home.
For pistols, your best bet is to stick with pistol boxes that feature mechanical locks only. Our first two picks are virtually impossible for a child to access without knowing your programmed code. Additionally, they also provide quick access as an added bonus. For quicker access, biometric pistol safes work well, but you have to stick with the highest grade tech to avoid buying a safe with a faulty fingerprint sensor.
Below, we share individual reviews of each of the five safes with a focus on child safety. Since we’re familiar with all of these safes, we’ll make sure you know all the most important points to consider before making your final decision.
#1) Fort Knox PB1 Original Pistol Box
Clamshell pistol boxes with Simplex mechanical push-button locks are second to none for child safety, especially with toddlers roaming around. The only way for a child to access this safe is with the combination, and the Simplex combination gives you a ton of options. In total, the five buttons allow for up to 1,081 different combinations. The really cool part is the option to push two buttons at once.
This means when you program your 3 to 5-digit code, it’s possible to open the safe with just 2 pushes. Furthermore, if you choose single-button pushes only, opening the safe requires up to 5 pushes. This feature gives you the perfect balance of quick access and security, depending on your needs. For example, you may want to program 1-2-5 as your combo, which allows you to easily press 1 & 2 at the same time before pressing 5 to open the safe. Then, for higher security, you might want to use a more randomized code such as 5-1-2-4-1 that requires more than two presses.
Outside of the entry method, you get a serious diesel safe with a 10-gauge steel body and a 3/16″ plate door. Unless your child has the strength of the Incredible Hulk, he or she’s not pulling this safe open. The final benefits are the interior egg-crate foam lining, pre-drilled holes for mounting, it’s made in the USA, backed by a limited lifetime warranty, and there’s a gas strut that props the door open when in use. Overall, the PB1 is the best pistol safe for child safety on the market.
Pros
- The clamshell design makes it virtually impossible for a child to pry open
- Single entry method
- The easily programmable and reliable Simplex lock
- Made in the USA
- Backed by a limited lifetime warranty
- Mount it below your bed or use it as a nightstand gun safe
- Heavy-duty 10-gauge steel construction
- Gas-strut assisted door for ease of use and to avoid slamming the door
- Very silent operation for stealth nighttime access
Cons
- No integrated interior light for nighttime access
- No LED light to illuminate the buttons
#2) V-Line BRUTE 1394-S FBLK Heavy Duty Handgun Safe with Quick-Access Lock
No, you’re not seeing double, but this safe is very similar to the Fort Knox PB1 safe. Both safes feature pry-resistant clamshell designs, Simplex mechanical locks, gas-assisted opening struts, egg-crate foam interiors, 10-gauge steel bodies, and they’re both made in the USA. However, there are several differences between the PB1 and BRUTE safes that may lead you to choose one over the other.
The first difference is the lids. The PB1 has a thicker lid with a shallower lip, while the BRUTE lid features the same 10-gauge steel used to construct the body of the safe. Plus, the BRUTE lid comes further down the body of the safe. Next, it’s important to consider the dimensions. The PB1 is narrower and deeper than the BRUTE safe, so consider your guns and the safes’ dimensions in the chart above before selecting between these two models.
Lastly, you may have noticed that the BRUTE safe features a 12-gauge steel handle around the lock faceplate for additional pry resistance. To sum things up, it’s important to consider the dimensions and lid design of each safe before deciding which one is better for your needs and if the BRUTE safe is worth paying more for since it does cost a bit more at the time of this writing.
Pros
- Similar to the Fort Knox PB1, children can not pry this safe open
- No need to rely on battery power
- No override key equals no possible way for your child or teenager to pick the lock
- Over 1,000 combinations offered by the Simplex mechanical lock
- A 12-gauge handle on the lock faceplate for enhanced pry resistance
- Made in the USA
- The soft egg-crate foam lining and gas-assisted opening strut
- Slightly longer than the Fort Knox PB1 for handguns with longer barrels
Cons
- The 10-gauge steel lid isn’t quite as heavy-duty as the 3/16″ (7 gauge) lid on the PB1
- No integrated lights for nighttime access
#3) New and Improved E.M.P Proof Steelwater HD593024-EMP Extreme Duty 22-Gun Safe
For folks who want an awesome all-around gun safe that’s built for ultimate security and to last a lifetime, Steelwater safes give you the most bang for your buck, hands down. Let’s begin by pointing out that the door on this safe features twenty 1.5″ solid steel locking bolts with thirteen chrome-plated active bolts. The seven inactive bolts are located along the door hinge. In other words, even a child with Superman’s strength who’s mysteriously efficient with tools is unlikely to be able to pry the door off this safe.
Next, four layers of fireboard make this model one of the best fireproof gun safes on the market with its impressive 2-hour fire rating. Just think of all the possibilities you have with this model. If you’re looking for a safe in this guide to secure your guns, valuables, jewelry, documents, and anything else you value, this is the one. On top of that, no child is breaking into this vault.
Last, let’s talk about how much this safe weighs coming in at a whopping 765 lbs. Of the safes in this guide, this one is the least likely to be stolen or even moved. Plus, there’s the option to bolt it down using the four 1/2″ pre-drilled holes and 1/4″ steel plate, which we recommend. One final feature we want to highlight is that it uses a double-bitted bypass key for a higher level of pick-resistance than most other safes offer.
Pros
- Features just about every security bell & whistle you can think of for 1000s less than other brands charge
- 2-hour fireproof rating at 1875°F
- Optional biometric lock
- The latest version features a UL-listed outlet with (3) 110 Volt A/C plugs and (2) USB ports
- A diesel 9-gauge steel body
- Features a door organizer to store pistols and valuable for quick access
- 2 re-lockers automatically lock the safe in the event of a punch or other attack on the lock
- Fully upholstered interior with removable shelving for customized organization
- Integrated lighting
Cons
- It might be more than you need, especially for apartment or condo renters
- Manufactured in China, designed in America
- Not the best option for bedside quick access
#4) MonsterVault Low Profile Safe
Now for easily one of the best under-bed gun safes currently available. MonsterVault originally manufactured this safe in China, but nowadays, it’s made 100% in America. Compared to other similar safes, it does cost more, though it’s impossible to put a price tag on peace of mind. We chose this safe from our collection of favorite under-bed models because it’s the most secure, most well-built, functions smoothly, and it’s the heaviest.
Another advantage of the “Low Profile” model is that it truly is one of the lowest profile under-bed gun safes you’ll find with an external height of 6″. MonsterVault’s “Original” safe is built with the same materials, and it’s a full inch taller, so if you have minimal clearance below your bed, the Low Profile model is the better route to take.
The beauty of this safe is the pull-out drawer that makes accessing your firearms very easy. We reluctantly skipped over Hornady’s under-bed model because the front-facing door forces the user to pull the guns out one by one. Plus, the locking mechanism is louder than the MonsterVault’s, and the MonsterVault features silent mode to mute the keypad’s beeping sounds.
Pros
- Store your collection of pistols, long guns, and ammo in this spacious safe
- The pull-out drawer allows you to see all of your guns at once to avoid having to pull out multiple guns to access your desired firearm
- Too heavy for children to move
- Silent keypad operation for stealthy nighttime access
- Super low-profile at only 6″ tall
- Great customer service marks
- 100% made in the USA
Cons
- Heavy loads may cause some sagging in the middle of the drawer
- Not as childproof as a safe without an override key
- Pricier than similar under-bed models
#5) Verifi Smart.Safe. Biometric Gun Safe
The final model is the best biometric child-proof gun safe. Why? We often recommend Verifi because of its 3D capacitive fingerprint sensors that take excellent prints. Compared to inferior fingerprint sensors that simply read the surface of your finger, Verifi’s capacitive sensors read deeper below the surface of the skin to get a more accurate print. Plus, the 3D advantage allows the sensor to read dirty fingers.
It’s also important to consider the reports about malfunctioning biometric sensors where people were able to open the lock with unregistered prints. Since no biometric lock is 100% perfect, it’s of the utmost importance to follow the directions to a T and thoroughly test the lock the first month or so to ensure it functions reliably. Compared to mechanical locks, biometric locks are riskier to use with children in the house, however, by choosing Verifi’s FBI-certified biometric fingerprint sensor, you mitigate that risk.
Outside of the sensor, this is a heavy-duty safe constructed of 14-gauge steel with a recessed 8-gauge steel door. Having said that, it’s not quite as secure as the Fort Knox or V-Line BRUTE safes. You definitely get pry-resistance with the Verifi safe, yet it’s not on par with what V-Line and Fort Knox offer. Finally, there are several models of this safe available to use as nightstand, under-bed, quick-access, and Verifi has even begun rolling out long gun safes.
Pros
- The speediest access of the safes in our guide
- FBI-grade fingerprint sensor
- Pre-drilled holes to mount it wherever you like
- An internal LED light for clear nighttime access
- Keep track of user logs
- The safe notifies you about failed login attempts, which is especially useful for parents with curious children
- Auto-locking with audible open-alerts
- Awesome battery life
Cons
- It’s possible to pick the lock with the right tools
- The floor lining could be a lot better
- Not as heavy-duty or secure as Fort Knox PB or V-Line BRUTE safes
Bottom Line
For parents of children with smartphones and teenagers, it’s best to stick with pistol safes with mechanical locks only because it’s not hard to look up how to pick a gun safe with tools that are readily available online. Overall, the best gun safes for child safety of the five in our guide are the Fort Knox PB models, V-Line’s BRUTE, and any Steelwater safe for long gun owners.
Those three safes provide the ultimate level of security that ensures your children, including toddlers and teens, cannot access your guns. Additionally, despite featuring mechanical locks only, Fort Knox and V-Line BRUTE safes are great quick-access safes in the event you need to protect your family due to intruders. In conclusion, yes, biometric locks are cool, just keep in mind that Simplex locks with no override key are more secure overall.
