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Healthcare providers in Pennsylvania: counts by specialty
How many healthcare providers work in Pennsylvania? The federal NPPES registry listed 331,709 active NPIs with a practice address in the state as of the June 2026 snapshot, the 7th largest workforce among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The single largest specialty is Physical Therapist, and Philadelphia is the city with the most records. The table below lists the 30 specialties with the most active providers and the share each one holds.
The 30 largest specialties in Pennsylvania
| # | Specialty (primary taxonomy) | Active NPIs | % of state |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Physical Therapist | 13,754 | 4.1% |
| 2 | Student in an Organized Health Care Education/Training Program | 13,224 | 4.0% |
| 3 | Pharmacist | 13,092 | 3.9% |
| 4 | Mental Health Counselor | 10,805 | 3.3% |
| 5 | Professional Counselor | 10,408 | 3.1% |
| 6 | Family Medicine Physician | 10,171 | 3.1% |
| 7 | Internal Medicine Physician | 9,047 | 2.7% |
| 8 | Clinical Social Worker | 8,785 | 2.6% |
| 9 | Physician Assistant | 7,904 | 2.4% |
| 10 | Speech-Language Pathologist | 7,417 | 2.2% |
| 11 | Occupational Therapist | 7,291 | 2.2% |
| 12 | Family Nurse Practitioner | 7,257 | 2.2% |
| 13 | Chiropractor | 6,314 | 1.9% |
| 14 | General Practice Dentistry | 6,221 | 1.9% |
| 15 | Registered Nurse | 5,372 | 1.6% |
| 16 | Social Worker | 5,101 | 1.5% |
| 17 | Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist | 4,906 | 1.5% |
| 18 | Behavior Technician | 4,335 | 1.3% |
| 19 | Emergency Medicine Physician | 4,207 | 1.3% |
| 20 | Dentist | 4,181 | 1.3% |
| 21 | Counselor | 4,095 | 1.2% |
| 22 | Nurse Practitioner | 3,984 | 1.2% |
| 23 | Licensed Practical Nurse | 3,952 | 1.2% |
| 24 | Pediatrics Physician | 3,941 | 1.2% |
| 25 | Medical Physician Assistant | 3,914 | 1.2% |
| 26 | Behavior Analyst | 3,909 | 1.2% |
| 27 | Optometrist | 3,884 | 1.2% |
| 28 | Home Health Agency | 3,590 | 1.1% |
| 29 | Registered Dietitian | 3,393 | 1.0% |
| 30 | In Home Supportive Care Agency | 3,279 | 1.0% |
What the numbers show
Physical Therapist leads with 13,754 active records, 4.1% of everything the state has, or 1.0 times the volume of Student in an Organized Health Care Education/Training Program, the runner up at 13,224. Pharmacist rounds out the podium with 13,092. Together, the top 5 specialties account for 18.5% of Pennsylvania's providers, and the 30 listed in the table cover 59.6% of the total. Overall, the state registry splits into 795 distinct taxonomies.
Geographically, active NPIs spread across 2,205 cities and towns in the state, but with heavy concentration: Philadelphia (52,485), Pittsburgh (33,149) and Allentown (7,168) post the largest volumes. Pennsylvania holds 3.6% of all active US providers registered across the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Source and method
Data: NPPES Data Dissemination file (National Plan and Provider Enumeration System), published by CMS as public domain data, snapshot of June 2026. Each provider is counted once, in the state and city of the Provider Business Practice Location, under the primary taxonomy declared in the NPI record itself. Only active NPI records are counted.
Important: an active NPI does not mean the professional is currently practicing, accepting new patients or even still working in the field; it only means the registration number remains valid. This page publishes aggregate counts only, never individual records.
Last updated: · Methodology and sources