State provider profile · CMS NPPES
Iowa Doctors & Healthcare Providers
Every CMS NPPES-registered provider in Iowa - actual federal records by specialty, city, and Medicare participation, with no composite score or editorial opinion on top.
- 47,312
- Providers
- 482
- Specialties
- 30+
- Cities (10+ NPIs)
- 37th
- of 56 by size
The state in one line
Iowa has 47,312 CMS-registered healthcare providers, the 37th-largest provider base of 56 U.S. jurisdictions, led by Pharmacist.
- 47,312
- NPPES-registered providers
- 37th
- of 56 jurisdictions
- Top 66%
- by provider count
- 6.6%
- Pharmacist (largest specialty)
Where Iowa ranks among all U.S. states
Provider count vs every U.S. state, DC and territory, CMS NPPES
47,312 34th percentile higher than 34% of 56 jurisdictions
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
47,312 providers across 482 specialties
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 Iowa. 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.
Iowa at a glance
Diverse specialty mixTop specialties in Iowa
Distribution by primary NUCC taxonomy - 482 specialties total
- Top specialty: Pharmacist
- 3,138
- 6.6% of Iowa's 47,312 providers
| # | Specialty | Providers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pharmacist | 3,138 |
| 2 | Physical Therapist | 2,596 |
| 3 | Mental Health Counselor | 2,345 |
| 4 | Family Medicine Physician | 2,267 |
| 5 | Chiropractor | 2,003 |
| 6 | Clinical Social Worker | 1,943 |
| 7 | Family Nurse Practitioner | 1,852 |
| 8 | Physician Assistant | 1,396 |
| 9 | Internal Medicine Physician | 1,320 |
| 10 | Student in an Organized Health Care Education/Training Program | 1,253 |
| 11 | General Practice Dentistry | 1,219 |
| 12 | Nurse Practitioner | 1,206 |
| 13 | Social Worker | 1,163 |
| 14 | Addiction (Substance Use Disorder) Counselor | 1,116 |
| 15 | Occupational Therapist | 1,060 |
| 16 | Speech-Language Pathologist | 1,050 |
| 17 | Behavior Technician | 927 |
| 18 | Registered Nurse | 924 |
| 19 | Dentist | 744 |
| 20 | Athletic Trainer | 701 |
Which cities in Iowa have the most providers?
Top cities in Iowa by provider count
Active CMS NPPES-registered providers by primary practice city
- Iowa City
Iowa City
6,894 providers
- Des Moines
Des Moines
5,293 providers
- Cedar Rapids
Cedar Rapids
2,893 providers
- West Des Moines 2,123
West Des Moines
2,123 providers
- Davenport 1,990
Davenport
1,990 providers
- Waterloo 1,477
Waterloo
1,477 providers
- Dubuque 1,457
Dubuque
1,457 providers
- Sioux City 1,439
Sioux City
1,439 providers
- Ames 1,200
Ames
1,200 providers
- Ankeny 1,143
Ankeny
1,143 providers
What this shows Iowa City leads Iowa's 30+ reporting cities; provider supply concentrates in the largest metros, so a statewide total understates rural access gaps.
Full city breakdown with each city's share of the state total:
| # | City | Providers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iowa City | 6,894 |
| 2 | Des Moines | 5,293 |
| 3 | Cedar Rapids | 2,893 |
| 4 | West Des Moines | 2,123 |
| 5 | Davenport | 1,990 |
| 6 | Waterloo | 1,477 |
| 7 | Dubuque | 1,457 |
| 8 | Sioux City | 1,439 |
| 9 | Ames | 1,200 |
| 10 | Ankeny | 1,143 |
| 11 | Council Bluffs | 1,000 |
| 12 | Mason City | 844 |
| 13 | Bettendorf | 735 |
| 14 | Coralville | 682 |
| 15 | Urbandale | 623 |
| 16 | Clive | 605 |
| 17 | Cedar Falls | 601 |
| 18 | Fort Dodge | 509 |
| 19 | Johnston | 504 |
| 20 | Clinton | 500 |
| 21 | Marshalltown | 430 |
| 22 | Ottumwa | 399 |
| 23 | Muscatine | 337 |
| 24 | Waverly | 337 |
| 25 | Spencer | 336 |
| 26 | Hiawatha | 329 |
| 27 | North Liberty | 319 |
| 28 | Pella | 313 |
| 29 | Decorah | 276 |
| 30 | Altoona | 268 |
Nearby States
Other high-volume states in the CMS NPPES registry for side-by-side context.
License & disciplinary context - Iowa
Aggregate state medical board disciplinary action statistics for Iowa licensees, sourced from the state medical board annual report and cross-checked against the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB).
View Iowa disciplinary trends →Using the Iowa data
Iowa has 47,312 active registered providers, here is how to act on that.
- Narrow by specialty first: Iowa'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 Iowa'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.
Explore Iowa
Frequently Asked Questions
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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