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How many pharmacists are there in the US

328,832 people in the United States hold a pharmacist taxonomy on the September 2026 NPPES file.

328,387 of them give a practice address in one of the 50 states, the District of Columbia or Puerto Rico. The rest give a territory, a foreign address, or no state.

The BLS counted 321,970 people employed as pharmacists (SOC 29-1051) in May 2025. NPPES is a register of identifiers and keeps a provider until the NPI is deactivated, so it runs above an employment count.

Source: ProfessionLens, September 2026. NPPES full replacement file, September 2026 (CMS). Employment: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

328,832 pharmacists on the NPPES file
36,296 pharmacists in California, the largest state
The ten states with the most pharmacistsCalifornia36,296New York24,446Florida21,253Texas21,229Pennsylvania14,351Ohio12,775Illinois10,844North Carolina10,825Georgia9,615Michigan9,611
The ten states with the most pharmacists

Source: ProfessionLens, September 2026. NPPES full replacement file, September 2026 (CMS). Employment: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

Pharmacists by state

StatePharmacistsShare of USPopulation 2024
California 36,296 11.1% 39,431,263
New York 24,446 7.4% 19,867,248
Florida 21,253 6.5% 23,372,215
Texas 21,229 6.5% 31,290,831
Pennsylvania 14,351 4.4% 13,078,751
Ohio 12,775 3.9% 11,883,304
Illinois 10,844 3.3% 12,710,158
North Carolina 10,825 3.3% 11,046,024
Georgia 9,615 2.9% 11,180,878
Michigan 9,611 2.9% 10,140,459
Washington 8,990 2.7% 7,958,180
New Jersey 8,683 2.6% 9,500,851
Tennessee 8,202 2.5% 7,227,750
Arizona 7,642 2.3% 7,582,384
Virginia 7,409 2.3% 8,811,195
Massachusetts 6,704 2.0% 7,136,171
Maryland 6,284 1.9% 6,263,220
Indiana 6,056 1.8% 6,924,275
Wisconsin 6,025 1.8% 5,960,975
Missouri 5,914 1.8% 6,245,466
South Carolina 5,729 1.7% 5,478,831
Minnesota 5,676 1.7% 5,793,151
Colorado 5,087 1.5% 5,957,493
Kentucky 4,961 1.5% 4,588,372
Alabama 4,913 1.5% 5,157,699
Louisiana 4,897 1.5% 4,597,740
Oregon 4,874 1.5% 4,272,371
Oklahoma 3,701 1.1% 4,095,393
Connecticut 3,693 1.1% 3,675,069
Iowa 3,527 1.1% 3,241,488
Puerto Rico 3,439 1.0% 3,203,295
Arkansas 3,161 1.0% 3,088,354
Kansas 2,924 0.9% 2,970,606
West Virginia 2,497 0.8% 1,769,979
Mississippi 2,473 0.8% 2,943,045
Nevada 2,443 0.7% 3,267,467
Utah 2,332 0.7% 3,503,613
New Mexico 2,303 0.7% 2,130,256
Idaho 2,034 0.6% 2,001,619
Nebraska 2,014 0.6% 2,005,465
Maine 1,463 0.4% 1,405,012
New Hampshire 1,393 0.4% 1,409,032
Hawaii 1,319 0.4% 1,446,146
Montana 1,246 0.4% 1,137,233
Rhode Island 1,215 0.4% 1,112,308
South Dakota 1,089 0.3% 924,669
North Dakota 955 0.3% 796,568
Delaware 949 0.3% 1,051,917
Alaska 843 0.3% 740,133
District of Columbia 784 0.2% 702,250
Wyoming 677 0.2% 587,618
Vermont 622 0.2% 648,493

Share is of the 328,387 pharmacists with a practice address in these 52 areas.

Source: ProfessionLens, September 2026. NPPES full replacement file, September 2026 (CMS). Employment: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

Cite this

ProfessionLens, How many pharmacists are there in the US, September 2026, https://professionlens.com/pharmacists.

Canonical URL
https://professionlens.com/pharmacists
Denominator
328,832 pharmacists on the NPPES file, September 2026

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