State provider profile · CMS NPPES

California Doctors & Healthcare Providers

Every CMS NPPES-registered provider in California - actual federal records by specialty, city, and Medicare participation, with no composite score or editorial opinion on top.

937,423
Providers
669
Specialties
30+
Cities (10+ NPIs)
1st
of 56 by size

The state in one line

California has 937,423 CMS-registered healthcare providers, the 1st-largest provider base of 56 U.S. jurisdictions, led by Behavior Technician.

937,423
NPPES-registered providers
1st
of 56 jurisdictions
Top 2%
by provider count
17.3%
Behavior Technician (largest specialty)

Where California ranks among all U.S. states

Provider count vs every U.S. state, DC and territory, CMS NPPES

937,423 Top 2% higher than 98% of 56 jurisdictions

0–25,000: 11 jurisdictions (20%). Below this entry. 25,000–50,000: 9 jurisdictions (16%). Below this entry. 50,000–75,000: 5 jurisdictions (9%). Below this entry. 75,000–100,000: 8 jurisdictions (14%). Below this entry. 100,000–125,000: 6 jurisdictions (11%). Below this entry. 125,000–150,000: 3 jurisdictions (5%). Below this entry. 150,000–175,000: 3 jurisdictions (5%). Below this entry. 175,000–200,000: 1 jurisdictions (2%). Below this entry. 200,000–225,000: 2 jurisdictions (4%). Below this entry. 225,000–250,000: 1 jurisdictions (2%). Below this entry. 250,000–275,000: 7 jurisdictions (13%). This entry sits in this band. This state 0 250K+ every U.S. jurisdiction (providers), bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more jurisdictions. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source CMS National Plan & Provider Enumeration System (NPPES) · 2026

937,423 providers across 669 specialties

What's distinctive here

The specialties California has more, and fewer, of than the nation

Relative to its size, California has about 4.6× the national share of rehabilitation practitioners and only 0.23× the share of professional counselors. These gaps reflect how each state licenses and classifies professions, not how much care is available.

Each multiple is California's share of that specialty divided by its national share, among specialties with at least 3,000 providers in-state. Source: CMS NPPES, current release.

How to read this directory

This count includes every individual clinician, physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, therapists, and psychologists, with a current active National Provider Identifier on file with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and a primary practice address in California. Organizations such as hospitals, group practices, and pharmacies carry their own separate NPPES records and are deliberately not included in this individual-provider total, and each clinician is counted once under their registered primary taxonomy. Every figure is drawn from the federal National Provider Identifier Registry (CMS NPPES) - more than 7 million providers, maintained since May 2007, with 2023 Medicare Part D data, and, according to CMS, can be searched, compared, and traced in our methodology.

Important: this is a directory of public CMS government data, not a quality ranking, a review aggregator, or medical advice. NPPES records are self-reported and refreshed monthly, so a listed address or phone number can lag reality; always call the office to confirm location, insurance acceptance, and new-patient availability before booking. Verify licensure and disciplinary history, which are not shown here, through the NPI Registry and your state medical board.

California at a glance

Typical distribution

Providers

937,423

Active CMS NPI registrations

Across 30+ cities

Specialties

669

NUCC taxonomy codes represented

Of 690 total specialties

Cities (10+ NPIs)

30

Crosses CMS reporting threshold

≥10 providers required

Top specialty

Behavior Technic…

162,290 providers

17.3% of state total

Top specialties in California

Distribution by primary NUCC taxonomy - 669 specialties total

Typical distribution
Top specialty: Behavior Technician
162,290
17.3% of California's 937,423 providers
# Specialty Providers
1 Behavior Technician 162,290
2 Marriage & Family Therapist 51,414
3 Student in an Organized Health Care Education/Training Program 46,496
4 Mental Health Counselor 36,093
5 Pharmacist 32,376
6 Clinical Social Worker 29,138
7 Addiction (Substance Use Disorder) Counselor 28,661
8 Case Manager/Care Coordinator 26,242
9 Physical Therapist 21,951
10 Internal Medicine Physician 20,046
11 Behavior Analyst 19,103
12 General Practice Dentistry 17,539
13 Counselor 17,448
14 Family Medicine Physician 15,933
15 Registered Nurse 15,601
16 Family Nurse Practitioner 15,115
17 Dentist 14,698
18 Physician Assistant 13,402
19 Community Health Worker 12,536
20 Chiropractor 11,464

Which cities in California have the most providers?

Top cities in California by provider count

Active CMS NPPES-registered providers by primary practice city

providers

What this shows Los Angeles leads California's 30+ reporting cities; provider supply concentrates in the largest metros, so a statewide total understates rural access gaps.

Source CMS National Plan & Provider Enumeration System (NPPES) As of 2026

Full city breakdown with each city's share of the state total:

# City Providers
1 Los Angeles 67,148
2 San Diego 51,322
3 San Francisco 36,790
4 Sacramento 32,149
5 San Jose 20,410
6 Fresno 18,585
7 Oakland 18,012
8 Monrovia 15,779
9 Riverside 13,204
10 Long Beach 13,201
11 Orange 12,496
12 Bakersfield 11,016
13 Pasadena 10,326
14 Stockton 9,242
15 Anaheim 8,820
16 Concord 8,701
17 Santa Ana 8,679
18 Modesto 8,636
19 Torrance 8,594
20 Irvine 7,457
21 Palo Alto 7,373
22 Santa Rosa 6,707
23 Walnut Creek 5,972
24 San Bernardino 5,419
25 Stanford 5,375
26 Santa Barbara 5,220
27 Fullerton 5,202
28 Roseville 5,125
29 Ontario 5,079
30 Santa Monica 5,035

Nearby States

Other high-volume states in the CMS NPPES registry for side-by-side context.

Compare specialties nationally →

License & disciplinary context - California

Aggregate state medical board disciplinary action statistics for California licensees, sourced from the Medical Board of California annual report and cross-checked against the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB).

View California disciplinary trends →

Using the California data

California has 937,423 active registered providers, here is how to act on that.

  • Narrow by specialty first: California's provider mix differs from the national distribution, and the per-specialty pages show who actually practices here. Browse specialties
  • Verify any shortlisted provider's federal record and license before booking, registration alone is not a quality signal. NPI lookup
  • Check California's disciplinary-action trends to understand the state board's enforcement context. Board actions

Counts reflect CMS NPPES registrations, which can lag retirements and relocations. PlainDoctor does not rate, rank, or recommend providers.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many healthcare providers are in California?
California has 937,423 healthcare providers registered in the CMS NPPES database, spanning 669 medical specialties across 30+ cities.
What is the most common medical specialty in California?
The most common specialty in California is Behavior Technician with 162,290 providers, followed by Marriage & Family Therapist.
How do I find a doctor in California?
You can browse California providers by specialty or city on this page, or use our search to find providers by name, NPI number, or location.

Provider data from CMS NPPES (download.cms.gov/nppes); specialty mix by NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy. PlainDoctor does not rate or rank providers. Methodology · About

Compiled from official public sources by the PlainDoctor editorial team.