The number of nurse practitioners in the U.S. grew 205% from 2012 to 2025, while the physician workforce grew 31%, according to an Ataraxis analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Ataraxis provides virtual administrative staff to medical practices.
The analysis used BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics national estimates, starting in 2012 because that is the first year BLS reported NPs as a separate occupation.
Five things to know:
1. NPs grew from 105,780 in 2012 to 323,040 in 2025, an increase of about 217,000.
2. Physicians grew from 759,490 to 998,240, an increase of about 239,000.
3. In 2012, there was about one NP for every seven physicians. By 2025, there was about one for every three.
4. Physicians and NPs combined grew 52.7%, from 865,270 to 1.32 million.
5. BLS revised its occupational classification system in 2018. The analysis said the sharpest single-year change in its data, from 2018 to 2019, coincides with that revision.
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