What is my Browning Hi-Power worth?
John Browning's last pistol design, finished after his death and produced for eighty years across several countries and one world war. The wartime guns are a separate world from the commercial ones.
Made 1935–2018.
No page can price your gun, and one that offers to is guessing. What this does is show you which one you have — because that is where the money is.
How to tell which one you have
- Read the slide legend and any maker markings, which identify where and when it was made.
- Look for military acceptance stamps, which distinguish wartime and contract production.
- Establish whether the sights are fixed or adjustable and whether the frame is cut for a shoulder stock.
- Check whether the finish is original and whether the magazine is correct.
The versions that change the number
| Version | What it means for value |
|---|---|
| Pre-war Belgian 1935–1940 | FN production before the occupation. Scarce and carefully made. |
| Wartime production 1940–1945 | Made under occupation in Belgium and in Canada by Inglis. Markings determine which, and they matter a great deal. |
| Post-war FN commercial 1945–1990s | The long commercial run. A large and varied market. |
| Later production and final runs 1990s–2018 | Including the end of production, which firmed up prices for clean examples. |
What actually drives the price
- Period and place of manufacture, from the markings.
- Whether it is a military contract gun and whether the proofs are intact.
- Original finish, and matching magazine and parts.
- Tangent sights and stock cuts, which identify particular contracts.
And the two that apply to every gun on this site: do not clean it, and keep the box and papers. Removing original finish is permanent, and on the right gun the packaging is a real part of the total.
"It is a 9mm service pistol, there are millions of them"
There are, and most are worth what a good used service pistol is worth. The wartime guns are not that, and neither are the pre-war Belgian pistols. The markings are small, they are on the slide and frame, and they are the whole difference.
It has strange proof marks I do not recognize. Is that bad?
Usually the opposite. Unfamiliar proofs and acceptance stamps often indicate military or contract production, which is where the interest is. Photograph them clearly rather than cleaning them and let somebody identify the contract.
Getting a number for yours
Send photographs and we will tell you what we will pay for it. We buy nationwide — a single firearm ships to us prepaid and insured, and for a collection we come to you. More on what separates one Browning from another.