Best Bedside Gun Safes 2026: Keypad, RFID and Mechanical

We don't test safes ourselves. We compare published specs, independent certifications and public safety records.

Our pick is the Fort Knox PB1 Pistol Box. A bedside safe has one job that matters more than any other: open for you, quickly and every time, and stay shut for anyone else. The PB1's mechanical pushbutton lock has no battery or circuit board to fail, and its listing describes the heaviest steel body among these seven. The other six trade some of that for speed, light or shape. All seven are non-biometric. If you want a fingerprint reader, see our biometric gun safes, which draw on a separate pool of models. For every type of handgun storage, start at the handgun safe guide.

Why the Fort Knox PB1 is our pick

Most quick-access failures people report are electronic: a keypad that dies with its batteries, or a code that stops being accepted. A mechanical Simplex-style pushbutton lock avoids both, which is why it has a loyal following for handgun boxes. The PB1 pairs that lock with a gas strut on the lid, a limited lifetime warranty and a made-in-USA claim, all from its listing.

Two caveats. The PB1 has no backup entry, so the combination is the only way in; record it somewhere safe and secure. Its listing says "California DOJ Certified," but the roster lists only one generic Fort Knox pistol box (FKPB), and we could not match the PB1 to it. We show that claim as unconfirmed.

Pick the lock by how you'll open it at night

• Mechanical pushbutton: the Fort Knox PB1 and the Viking VS-12LSX. No batteries. You enter the code by feel. The Viking adds a removable security cable.
• Keypad with key backup: the Fortress P2EA, the SentrySafe QAP2EL and the Vaultek Slider Essential. Keypads light up and can lock out repeated wrong codes, but they need fresh batteries or a power cable.
• RFID: the Hornady Rapid Safe Keypad Vault (97436) opens when you hold a tag or wristband to it, and also takes a code or a key.
• Drop-down drawer: the GunVault SV500 mounts on a wall, under a shelf or against a bed frame and drops its drawer open. Its listing names no backup entry method, and the seller on 2026-10-17 was a third-party reseller, so check both before you buy.

Shape decides where a safe can go. The Vaultek Slider is a slim upright case for a gap beside a bed or desk, but it holds one handgun. The SentrySafe QAP2EL is a flat lid-opening box for a drawer or nightstand top. Compare outside sizes in the table before you measure your furniture.

Recall checks and brand history

None of these seven models matched a CPSC recall or warning in our searches on 2026-10-17. One brand has an action on other models: Fortress recalled about 61,000 biometric safes in October 2023 (models 11B20, 44B10, 44B10L, 44B20, 55B20, 55B30, 55B30G, 4BGGBP and 55B30BP), after owners found the safes left in a default open mode. The P2EA here is a keypad model and is not in that recall.

Keypads have their own history. In 2004 Stack-On recalled a keypad "Strong Box" that could be opened by jiggling the knob. Stack-On is not a pick here, but the lesson applies to any small safe: after you set it up, pull firmly on the closed lid and confirm it stays locked.

Where a bedside safe sits in the law

Everytown and Giffords count 26 states plus DC with child-access-prevention or secure-storage laws. Most accept either a locked container or a lock fitted to the gun, so in most states the law does not require a safe as such. What a bedside safe does is meet those duties without slowing you down. RAND rates the evidence that these laws reduce unintentional firearm injuries and deaths among children as "supportive," its highest rating.

Four of these seven (the Hornady, Fortress, GunVault and SentrySafe) appear on the California DOJ roster of certified firearm safety devices, which we searched by maker and model on 2026-10-17. The roster lists devices approved to accompany a California firearm sale. It is not a burglary grade. The Fort Knox claim is unconfirmed, as above, and the Viking and the Vaultek Slider make no roster claim.

Read how fire claims on gun safes work before treating a small box as fire protection, and how we rate for the labels in the table. If the safe will also travel in a car, our car gun safe guide covers the state vehicle-storage rules.