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Healthcare providers in South Carolina: counts by specialty
How many healthcare providers work in South Carolina? The federal NPPES registry listed 114,324 active NPIs with a practice address in the state as of the June 2026 snapshot, the 27th largest workforce among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The single largest specialty is Pharmacist, and Columbia 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 South Carolina
| # | Specialty (primary taxonomy) | Active NPIs | % of state |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pharmacist | 5,228 | 4.6% |
| 2 | Mental Health Counselor | 4,621 | 4.0% |
| 3 | Family Nurse Practitioner | 4,363 | 3.8% |
| 4 | Physical Therapist | 4,337 | 3.8% |
| 5 | Family Medicine Physician | 3,933 | 3.4% |
| 6 | Speech-Language Pathologist | 3,586 | 3.1% |
| 7 | Behavior Technician | 3,305 | 2.9% |
| 8 | Professional Counselor | 3,011 | 2.6% |
| 9 | General Practice Dentistry | 2,750 | 2.4% |
| 10 | Chiropractor | 2,601 | 2.3% |
| 11 | Internal Medicine Physician | 2,412 | 2.1% |
| 12 | Clinical Social Worker | 2,346 | 2.1% |
| 13 | Physician Assistant | 2,280 | 2.0% |
| 14 | Student in an Organized Health Care Education/Training Program | 2,117 | 1.9% |
| 15 | Occupational Therapist | 2,003 | 1.8% |
| 16 | Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist | 1,898 | 1.7% |
| 17 | Registered Nurse | 1,768 | 1.5% |
| 18 | Counselor | 1,549 | 1.4% |
| 19 | Dentist | 1,513 | 1.3% |
| 20 | Emergency Medicine Physician | 1,350 | 1.2% |
| 21 | Nurse Practitioner | 1,310 | 1.1% |
| 22 | Pediatrics Physician | 1,308 | 1.1% |
| 23 | Optometrist | 1,263 | 1.1% |
| 24 | Social Worker | 1,219 | 1.1% |
| 25 | Home Health Agency | 1,163 | 1.0% |
| 26 | Addiction (Substance Use Disorder) Counselor | 1,121 | 1.0% |
| 27 | In Home Supportive Care Agency | 1,110 | 1.0% |
| 28 | Psychiatry Physician | 1,057 | 0.9% |
| 29 | Behavior Analyst | 1,050 | 0.9% |
| 30 | Durable Medical Equipment & Medical Supplies | 1,040 | 0.9% |
What the numbers show
Pharmacist leads with 5,228 active records, 4.6% of everything the state has, or 1.1 times the volume of Mental Health Counselor, the runner up at 4,621. Family Nurse Practitioner rounds out the podium with 4,363. Together, the top 5 specialties account for 19.7% of South Carolina's providers, and the 30 listed in the table cover 60.0% of the total. Overall, the state registry splits into 704 distinct taxonomies.
Geographically, active NPIs spread across 529 cities and towns in the state, but with heavy concentration: Columbia (14,227), Greenville (12,425) and Charleston (12,236) post the largest volumes. South Carolina holds 1.2% 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