How many physical therapists are there in the US?
There are 289,264 active individual NPIs with physical therapist as the primary taxonomy in the CMS NPPES registry, plus 61,515 with physical therapy assistant, as of the September 2026 file (records to 13 September 2026) (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). Active means the NPI has not been deactivated, and organization NPIs such as clinics are not included, so this is a count of registry records, not a census of people currently practising. Below, the same file is broken down by taxonomy code, practice state, enumeration year and how recently each record was updated.
Our data
Contribution: first-party data, derived analysis, downloadable dataset
- Collected: counts from the CMS NPPES September 2026 file, where each active individual NPI is counted once under its primary taxonomy, the slot flagged primary or else slot 1 (aggregated 13 September 2026). Taxonomy codes are self-reported by providers.
- Published: 55 NPI counts, each covering at least 10 NPI records (smaller groups are withheld).
- Method: the exact queries, row counts and thresholds are in the methodology.
- Computed: 25 derived figures (top-3 and top-5 totals, group totals, shares, what the listed rows leave out and remaining counts) from the published figures. Each is a dataset row with its formula, inputs and expression, so it can be recomputed.
- Tracked: in our source-fact ledger since 4 October 2026; no changes recorded yet.
- Sources: the source manifest (JSON) lists the source behind the figures (registry files), each with its public URL, retrieval date, status and the reason any is left out. A card's or table's Source link goes to that source's own page.
- Reproduce it: download the data as CSV or JSON (80 rows; variables: Physical therapists and assistants in the NPPES file; Physical therapists per taxonomy code; Physical therapists per practice state; Physical therapist NPIs by enumeration year; Update age of physical therapist NPI records; Derived figure; license CC BY 4.0).
What the taxonomy codes show
Most physical therapists use the general code as their primary taxonomy: 266,937 active NPIs have 225100000X (Physical Therapist, general) as primary, 92.3% of the total (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). The top 3 taxonomy codes combined account for 284,592 NPIs and the top 5 for 287,785, which means the six codes outside the top 5 together hold just 1,479 NPIs (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). Specialty codes are rarely the primary taxonomy: orthopedic (10,833) and pediatrics (6,822) are the largest, and every other specialty code is primary for 2,063 NPIs or fewer, down to 65 for ergonomics and 30 for human factors.
Physical therapists per taxonomy code
| Rank | Name | NPIs | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 225100000X (Physical Therapist, general) | 266,937 NPIs | 92.3% |
| 2 | 2251X0800X (Orthopedic) | 10,833 NPIs | 3.7% |
| 3 | 2251P0200X (Pediatrics) | 6,822 NPIs | 2.4% |
| 4 | 2251G0304X (Geriatrics) | 2,063 NPIs | 0.7% |
| 5 | 2251N0400X (Neurology) | 1,130 NPIs | 0.4% |
| 6 | 2251S0007X (Sports) | 967 NPIs | 0.3% |
| 7 | 2251H1200X (Hand) | 182 NPIs | 0.1% |
| 8 | 2251E1300X (Electrophysiology, Clinical) | 121 NPIs | 0.0% |
| 9 | 2251C2600X (Cardiopulmonary) | 114 NPIs | 0.0% |
| 10 | 2251E1200X (Ergonomics) | 65 NPIs | 0.0% |
| 11 | 2251H1300X (Human Factors) | 30 NPIs | 0.0% |
Where physical therapists practise
The state table lists the 15 states with the largest counts. California leads with 25,628 NPIs (8.9% of the national total), followed by New York at 24,049 (8.3%) and Texas at 17,121 (5.9%) (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). The top 3 states combined hold 66,798 NPIs and the top 5 hold 96,509, so the remaining 10 listed states together account for 89,253 (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). The distribution is flatter than the taxonomy split: after the top two states, counts step down gradually from Texas through Pennsylvania (13,859) and Illinois (12,863) to Colorado at 7,109 (2.5%). This comparison covers 15 of 51 jurisdictions (50 states and DC); 36 are not included in this comparison.
Physical therapists per practice state
| Rank | Name | NPIs | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CA | 25,628 NPIs | 8.9% |
| 2 | NY | 24,049 NPIs | 8.3% |
| 3 | TX | 17,121 NPIs | 5.9% |
| 4 | FL | 15,852 NPIs | 5.5% |
| 5 | PA | 13,859 NPIs | 4.8% |
| 6 | IL | 12,863 NPIs | 4.4% |
| 7 | NJ | 10,585 NPIs | 3.7% |
| 8 | MI | 10,222 NPIs | 3.5% |
| 9 | NC | 9,472 NPIs | 3.3% |
| 10 | OH | 8,302 NPIs | 2.9% |
| 11 | WA | 8,119 NPIs | 2.8% |
| 12 | MA | 7,769 NPIs | 2.7% |
| 13 | VA | 7,565 NPIs | 2.6% |
| 14 | GA | 7,247 NPIs | 2.5% |
| 15 | CO | 7,109 NPIs | 2.5% |
When today's therapists were first enumerated
Enumeration year shows how the current active base was built. The largest cohorts are 2006, with 38,458 active NPIs first enumerated that year, and 2007, with 31,106, the first full years of a registry whose earliest records date from 23 May 2005 (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). Records first enumerated from 2005 to 2015 make up 154,816 of the 289,264 (53.5%), and those from 2016 onward 134,448 (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). Since 2016 the yearly count has been steady: every year from 2016 to 2025 sits between 10,814 and 14,290 active NPIs, with 2018 the highest, and 2026 stands at 10,173 with records to 13 September only. Each year counts only that year's NPIs that are still active, so it is not the number of therapists enumerated that year and says nothing about those who left the registry.
Physical therapist NPIs by enumeration year
| Name | NPIs |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 5,456 NPIs |
| 2006 | 38,458 NPIs |
| 2007 | 31,106 NPIs |
| 2008 | 12,202 NPIs |
| 2009 | 9,385 NPIs |
| 2010 | 9,032 NPIs |
| 2011 | 9,215 NPIs |
| 2012 | 10,236 NPIs |
| 2013 | 9,192 NPIs |
| 2014 | 10,214 NPIs |
| 2015 | 10,320 NPIs |
| 2016 | 10,814 NPIs |
| 2017 | 11,202 NPIs |
| 2018 | 14,290 NPIs |
| 2019 | 12,683 NPIs |
| 2020 | 12,213 NPIs |
| 2021 | 12,821 NPIs |
| 2022 | 12,196 NPIs |
| 2023 | 12,621 NPIs |
| 2024 | 12,577 NPIs |
| 2025 | 12,858 NPIs |
| 2026 | 10,173 NPIs |
How current the records are
Registry maintenance matters if you use NPPES for outreach. 108,464 physical therapist NPI records (37.5%) were last updated 10 or more years before 1 October 2026, and a further 64,573 (22.3%) 5 to 10 years before (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). Together, 173,037 records (59.8%) have gone 5 or more years without an update. At the fresh end, 32,368 records (11.2%) were updated within the last year and 46,714 (16.1%) one to three years before (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). An old update date does not mean the provider is gone; it means the provider has not changed their registry details recently. Our NPI staleness report gives 282,686 physical therapist records and a 63% five-year share. It uses the August 2026 file and measures update age to 1 September 2026, while this page uses the September 2026 file and measures to 1 October 2026; those two differences explain only part of the gap, and the rest reflects differences in how the two analyses were computed.
Update age of physical therapist NPI records
| Name | NPI records | Share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1 year | 32,368 NPI records | 11.2% |
| 1 to 3 years | 46,714 NPI records | 16.1% |
| 3 to 5 years | 37,145 NPI records | 12.8% |
| 5 to 10 years | 64,573 NPI records | 22.3% |
| 10 years or more | 108,464 NPI records | 37.5% |
What these figures support
For teams buying or building provider data, the taxonomy table is the clearest signal: only 10,833 NPIs hold the orthopedic code and 6,822 the pediatric code as their primary taxonomy, and this page does not count therapists who list those codes in another slot, so targeting by primary specialty code alone will miss some specialists. The state table shows the top 5 states hold 96,509 NPIs and the next 10 another 89,253, so a top-5-only list misses roughly half of what the 15 listed states cover, and 103,502 records sit outside the 15 listed states altogether. The update-age table is the practical filter: with 37.5% of records untouched for a decade, recency of last update is a free first check before any verification spend. None of these tables tell you employment, practice setting or contactability; they describe registry records only, and our guide to the NPPES file contents lists which fields each record holds.
What this data does and does not measure
The count comes from the CMS NPPES monthly full dissemination file (September 2026, V2, records enumerated 23 May 2005 to 13 September 2026), loaded and grouped by primary taxonomy, the slot flagged primary or slot 1 otherwise, with NUCC taxonomy 26.1 labels (CMS NPPES, Provyx aggregation, observed 13 September 2026). Three limits follow from that method. First, it counts NPI records, not licensed or practising therapists: it includes every active individual record with physical therapist as the primary taxonomy, whether or not the person currently sees patients, and leaves out therapists who chose another primary code. Second, "practice state" is the state on the registry record, and the comparison lists only the 15 largest states, leaving 36 of 51 jurisdictions (50 states and DC) not included in this comparison. Third, the snapshot is a single date, 13 September 2026, so the enumeration-year figures describe the active base as it stands, not a trend over time. Groups smaller than 10 NPIs are excluded from the breakdowns.
How to use the dataset
The CSV and JSON files hold 80 rows: one row per aggregate group (each published figure), plus one row per derived figure with its formula and inputs (55 observed, 25 derived). The rows behind each group (the collected source rows) are not published.
Columns: id (row id (observed rows r01..., derived figures d01...)), kind (observed or derived), entity, attribute, scenario, value, number (the figure as a plain number), unit, scope (the scope, or a derived figure's input row ids), input_price_scope, scenario_scope, formula (a derived figure's formula in words), expression (its arithmetic over the input figures), source_owner, source_url, observed_at, fixture.
Variables: Physical therapists and assistants in the NPPES file; Physical therapists per taxonomy code; Physical therapists per practice state; Physical therapist NPIs by enumeration year; Update age of physical therapist NPI records; Derived figure. NPPES figures as of 13 September 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
Each observed row's source_url is its public source (the page the data came from) or, for a figure built from several sources, the section of the source manifest that lists them; derived rows list their input rows in scope.
To use it, filter attribute to the figure you need, sort by number, and cite the row's source_owner and observed_at. Recompute any derived row from its expression and the input rows its scope lists.