The most popular options for EDC (Every Day Carry) are inside the waistband options. This Belly Band option doesn’t clip to a belt. It is an elastic band than can be worn without pants, if you are into that kind of thing.

When it comes to carrying a firearm you have a lot of choices to choose from. Let’s take a look at the most popular areas on your body to carry a firearm and when you may want to use each different position.

When narrowing down your options, there are four main areas to consider when deciding on how and where to carry a firearm.

Damage caused from negligent discharge
Ease of drawing
Comfort of carrying
Concealment / printing

Every person is different and there are a lot of opinions on which of these four items is the most important. It even varies from situation to situation. For example, I don’t care about concealment when I am carrying in the woods. I am more concerned about easy and quick access to my gun. However, if I am carrying at the mall, I really don’t want anyone knowing I am carrying. So, concealment is more important when at the mall.

Damage caused from negligent discharge. When we refer to damage caused from a negligent discharge we are referring to damage caused to your body. A negligent discharge is never planned and should never happen, but they do. There are plenty of videos online showing how these discharges can even happen to trained professionals, even instructors. So, in the 1 in a 100,000 chance you have a negligent discharge what is the worst thing that could happen when drawing or holstering?

The majority of negligent discharges that result in self inflicted wounds from drawing or holstering occur below the belly button or to hands. The most vital concern below the belly button is a gut shot or severing the femoral artery. The femoral artery runs down the inside of a leg and severing the femoral artery could cause death within minutes because of blood loss. A negligent discharge that hits muscle or bone and doesn’t sever a major artery or vital organ shouldn’t lead to death as long as the wound is quickly attended by a medical professional.

So, let’s get into the options.

The most popular options for EDC (Every Day Carry) are inside the waistband options.

Inside the waistband can be split into three primary holster options: Belly bands, single clip hard holster or pancake style double clip holsters. There are two primary carry positions for inside the waistband: strong hand hip and appendix.

***This inside the waistband option uses a clip to secure the firearm to a belt when drawn.***

Inside the Waistband Strong Hand Hip

carry which is generally carried right behind the Greater Trochanter at the top of the femur.(include picture). Carrying behind the protruding part of the femur allows the firearm to sit more flush with the body and reduces discomfort. A benefit to carrying on the hip carry position is, if there is a negligent discharge you will most likely not shoot anything vital. The downside to carrying on the hip is, it is easy to see when you are drawing because your elbow has to move up as your hand moves back. Another downside to the hip carry versus appendix carry is, if you are in a fight or someone is on top of you it is far easier to access your firearm and protect your vitals by drawing from the appendix position. Drawing from the hip position requires you to move your arm and hand away from your abdomen, opening it up to get stabbed or struck while you draw from your side. Lastly, it is harder to draw from a sitting position versus the easy to draw from sitting appendix position. You could still destroy your knee or shoot off a toe if you have a negligent discharge from a hip carry position, but you should train to make sure you don’t sweep your body when drawing.

Inside the Waistband Appendix Carry

is quicker, easier, and less noticeable when drawing than the hip carry position. The major area of concern with the appendix carry is “the goods” you have in that area. A negligent discharge from the appendix carry position while drawing or holstering could lead to shooting off your manhood, or womanhood, and a far greater chance of hitting your femoral artery. So, in regards to the 1 in 100,000 chance of a negligent discharge, this is one of the more dangerous carry positions.

***The only retention device this duty style holster has is compressed plastic around the trigger guard. The screw under the trigger guard can be used to adjust the tension.***

Outside the Waistband Holsters

can be split into two main categories: low profile pancake style and easy to access duty style.

Pancake Hip holsters

can use clips or belt slots. Most people who choose to carry a low profile outside the waistband choose the belt slot design because there is less of a chance that the gun holster comes out with the gun when drawing. The pancake options are convenient because the individual doesn’t have to walk like John Wayne with their arms out from their sides to avoid constantly brushing their gun with their forearm while walking.

Duty style Hip holsters

typically are bigger and bulkier than the low profile styles but allow the user to have quick and easy access to their firearm. Both low profile and duty styles have some form of retention device to keep the gun in the holster and most include either a removable strap that slides or snaps on over the back of the gun or plastic and leather that compresses around the trigger guard to keep it in place. More advanced retention devices are designed for quicker and more reliable retention. These more advanced options require the user to push or squeeze a button in order to release the gun. If you think you may be jumping, running, crawling, or any other action besides walking and sitting down, you may want to invest in a holster with a more advanced retention device so there is no chance of your gun falling out of your holster.

SERPA design duty style holsters. SERPA designs require you to push a release button to release your firearm. The downside to the SERPA design is it could cause the user to inadvertently pull the trigger when pulling the gun out of the holster. Those who practice with SERPA designs tend not to have this issue and claim that the issue is with the user not being familiar with how to properly use the holster. Either way there is a push out there to remove these holsters from the market due to the number of negligent discharges that have happened with the holster.

***When using a SERPA style holster do not use the tip of your finger to push the release button. This could cause the finger to move to the trigger right out of the holster.***

Shoulder Holsters

are easily concealed with a vest or jacket. Traditional shoulder holsters are not very stationary and aren’t held tight to the body. A shoulder holster is a good option for individuals who want easy access to their firearm, wear a vest or jacket, and don’t want the firearm easily seen. If you are in an environment where you could be hugging people, such as church, you must be comfortable with people sandwiching your gun between yourself and the person you are hugging.

Chest holsters

are designed primarily with the hiker in mind. An issue with carrying a firearm on the hip while hiking or backpacking is the backpack hip belt is where you would normally carry a firearm. Also, if you carry inside the waistband while backpacking, the backpack will not sit properly on the hips like it was designed to do and will significantly limit access to your firearm under the backpack hip strap. Chest holsters are easily accessible, and can be adjusted to fit in between the backpack shoulder and hip straps. The biggest downside to the chest holster is it is easily visible. This setup is good if you are in the back country and don’t mind every person you encounter clearly seeing a gun on your chest. Also, most chest holsters put the gun in a horizontal position when holstered. A negligent discharge when holtering or drawing from a chest holster would cause a horizontal shot which is far more dangerous to others than a downward negligent discharge from other holster types.

***When using a SERPA style holster you should use the finger joint to push the release button. This will help prevent the finger from moving to the trigger right out of the holster***

Ankle Holsters

traditionally, ankle holsters have been used for backup guns. A holster in this position is not easy to access and requires a small gun. Drawing from an ankle position is very visible as you must bend over, use one hand to pull up your pants, then draw your gun with your free hand. If you are in an environment where people may be hugging you a lot or putting their hands on your hips, and you aren’t comfortable with someone touching your gun through your clothes, an ankle holster is an option. Also, if you have a bunch of kids running around and trying to latch onto your legs, an ankle holster might not be the best option.

Thigh or Drop Leg Holsters

have been traditionally used for military or law enforcement officers. Thigh holsters are used when the waistline has too many obstacles to drawing from the hip, such as bulky vests, a loaded equipment belt, or a backpack hip belt. The downside to the thigh holster is it is uncomfortable and it snags on everything. It is hard to get the thigh holster in a position that doesn’t wiggle and move around and crawling or running requires regular readjustments. A plus to the thigh holster is the ease of drawing from a seated position.

There are many options on how to carry a firearm. Different situations call for different carry holsters and positions. The main things to consider are: danger if negligent misfire occurs, ease of drawing, comfort, and concealment. No matter which option is used, a responsible gun owner should make sure to do plenty of ammo free drawing practice to make sure they can efficiently draw their firearm safely.

Have You Considered All 8 Ways To Carry?