FFL Safe Review: Free FFL Software?

FFL Safe is the newest and most up-to-date FFL software and it’s absolutely free.

But a major question people have is whether or not its free price is actually free and whether it provides enough. Also, will it stay free (the answer is yes) and what features does it provide.

Another big question is how does it stack against other FFL Software. Since all other FFL compliance software is paid or has paid versions, and increases with the number of sales you make, how does a free FFL software compete or even exist?

These are great questions, and was really the things that drove me to pair up with a firearms attorney and work to create FFL Safe, the software I’ve always wanted. As you’ll see, I found that most FFL software was very hard to use, and not intuitive. Furthermore, I didn’t believe in the pricing system that people had. Now, you’ll see that I’d be biased considering I built this. However, as I walk through and show you the features and capabilities that FFL Safe has, and that it is absolutely free, I’m sure this will be the right option for most FFLs out there and can help save them hundreds of dollars a year.

So, in this FFL Safe review, I hope to dig into that and help answer those questions and show you why FFL Safe is an amazing option.

FFL Safe Review

Having reviewed just about every FFL software on the market, I’ve found that there are four major areas one should focus on when comparing:

• Pricing
• Interface
• Features
• Compliance

Therefore, in this FFL Safe review, I go through each aspect and list how it compares to other compliance softwares and whether it is the right choice for you FFL compliance needs.

How Much Does FFL Safe Cost?

Let’s start with one of the biggest reason’s why FFL Safe is ranked #1 in our list: FFL Safe is absolutely free.

There is no ‘gotcha-ya’ pricing that comes later, no subscription or pro-level for the software…nothing. It’s absolutely free to use.

Now, you may be wondering, if it’s free, then is it limited or even good? Cause the truth is, I’ve seen free software before that totally misses the mark. And the answer to that, is it has just about all you need to run your FFL and stay complaint and we’re really proud of how great it works.

I’ll explain more later, but we designed FFLSafe to have all the features a home-based FFL would want. Where you might run into limitation is if say you are running a LARGE gun store and need things like barcodes, multiple sales reports, etc.

FFL Safe Interface and Usability

When it comes to FFL Safe, one thing that really makes it stand out from the paid FFL Software is its interface and how easy it is to use. We worked really hard to make it clean and clear (see the side by side comparison of FFL Safe and Fast Bound).

You will find using it, that the buttons are where they should be, and that the process to enter or dispose of a gun just makes sense. Furthermore, unlike other software, if you get confused about something, there are ‘i’s that you can hover over where we explain what you should do.

I think the reason why the other FFL software on the market are not as good is because when they were first designed, they didn’t know of or have certain features. Then over time, as they came out with more features, they just stuck them in places. It’s because of this, that most of the other FFL Software are incredibly hard to use, and at certain times don’t make sense. FFLSafe was clearly made with each step being thought out, and each features being where you’d naturally want it to be.

So, for look and feel of the software, and its ease of use, this gets an A+ for being better than the rest by a long shot.

But, of course I’d say it’s great… we designed it to be great. What really matters is what you think … go check it out for yourself!

FFL Safe’s Features

Okay, so we’ve established that FFL Safe is both free, and we made it incredibly easy to use with the cleanest look for them all. The big question is, what features does it have and is that good enough for your needs.

Right now, FFL Safe is a complete A&D bound book, and will easily and effortlessly help you to receive and dispose of weapons, with guidance on each step of the way. It does allow you to do background checks, and performs FFL ez checks.

Basically, it is everything a home-based FFL would need. So, there is NO reason for FFL’s to pay money from one of the other programs, when you can get everything you need for free.

My only criticism of its features is that it currently doesn’t have electronic 4473 capability. So, you’ll just need to use a paper form and keep it in your records. HOWEVER, come early May, we will be adding that feature!

As for large gun stores, FFLSafe might not be what you need. As it stands, FFLSafe does not integrate with any POS systems (although we are currently working on that), barcode scanning, and batch orders. However, again, our programming team is working on adding those things as we speak and those features will be coming out very soon.

So, for features, I’d give it an A+ for home-based FFL level users because it has all the necessary features an FFL like this would need while hleping to assist in your A&D transactions.

However, for the large gun stores, I’d have to give it B- until the other store-based features come out. See? I can be objective. 🙂

How Compliant is FFL Safe?

While FFL Safe doesn’t have all the features that a large gun store might need, it is actually the MOST compliant software on the market (contrary to what others might claim).

First off, it was created by a firearms attorney who has worked with multiple FFL softwares, and has even helped to certify one of the major compliance softwares in the past.

But second, and here is where most FFL Softwares falter, FFL Safe is the only FFL software that automatically downloads your database on to your computer (as required by the ATF). The other FFL softwares get around that requirement by either reminding/telling you the user that you need to make a copy yourself and store it on your computer daily OR they have you set up some complicated work-around using other/3rd party software to store and sync the information to your computer.

Basically they put the onus on you to stay compliant.

So, because of this, FFL Safe is the most compliant FFL software out there and thus gets an A+ for compliance.

FFL Safe Pros and Cons

Final FFL Safe Review Recommendation:

As you can see, FFL Safe is an absolutely incredible choice for your FFL.  Not only is it free, and can thus save you hundreds of dollars a year, it is also the easiest to use, and is getting more and more features by the month.

It’s also incredibly easy to transfer your previous book over to it (takes like 3 minutes). So, if you want to establish your FFL compliance on a legitimate and free system that only gets better, then check out FFL Safe.

Because of this, I give FFL Safe the top grade and list it as the Editor’s Choice.