States With the Highest Demand for Nurse Practitioners

If you’re considering a career as a nurse practitioner (NP), you may wonder about the current demand. The opportunities for NPs continue to increase rapidly across the United States. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics ranks NPs among the top five fastest-growing occupations with the highest projected growth at 52% between 2020-2030.

Read on to learn about the top 10 best states for nurse practitioners.

The tables in this section list the top 10 states for NP job growth from 2018-2028 as reported by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Projections Central. The first table provides the number of projected new jobs in each state from 2018-2028, and the second table lists the projected percentage of job growth for those states.

Projections Central reports a projected 21,870 NP jobs in New York by 2028, with an average of 1,640 new positions added annually from 2018-2028. New York’s Department of Labor breaks down the numbers within the top 10 regions.

Projections Central’s data for California points to 19,700 NP jobs by 2028 and 1,390 average annual openings from 2018-2028. The top 10 regional data is pulled from the California Employment Development Department.

According to Projections Central, Texas should see an annual average job increase of 1,170 for a total of 16,430 NP jobs by 2028. These include the Texas Labor Market Information’s regional projected openings for 2018-2028.

Florida’s Department of Economic Opportunity figures for 2020-2028 contribute to the 15,200 total NP jobs projected by 2028, broken down to an average annual increase of 1,110 openings.

Projections Central offers projections of 760 average new Illinois NP positions per year between 2018 and 2028, for a total of 10,700 jobs by 2028. Regional projections are provided by the Illinois Department of Employment Security.

According to Projections Central, Tennessee NPs should see an increase of 730 job openings per year from 2018-2028. By 2028, the total number of NP jobs is projected to hit 10,060.

Tennessee’s Department of Labor & Workforce Development reports NP data in nine regional areas for 2018-2028.

Ohio breaks down its 2018-2028 labor projections into seven metropolitan statistical areas. NPs can look forward to a total of 9,620 new positions by 2028, with an average annual increase of 650 jobs per year from 2018-2028, as reported by Projections Central.

From 2018-2028, Projections Central expects to see an increase of 660 average annual positions for a total of 8,850 NP openings. The Georgia Department of Labor lists top 10 regional data for the same time period.

The Department of Unemployment Assistance in Massachusetts provides regional projections from 2018-2028 for the number of new NP positions, but not percentages of change. NPs should see an increase of 540 positions each year during that time frame, and a total of 8,550 jobs by 2028.

The Center for Workforce Information & Analysis at Pennsylvania’s Department of Labor and Industry reports regional NP job projections data for 2018-2028. Projections Central’s figures point to an average of 570 new positions during that time, for a total number of NP jobs of 8,220 by 2028.

Nurse practitioner demand is the highest in New York, with an average of 1,640 annual openings projected from 2018-2028. This translates into a projected 21,870 NP positions by 2028.

A number of factors contribute to the high demand for NPs, including an aging U.S. population experiencing chronic disease, turnover due to retirement, challenges in nursing education and practice during the COVID-19 pandemic, and an overarching nationwide primary care physician shortage.

While a nationwide registered nurse shortage continues, a 2020 study found that the NP population grew by more than 100% between 2010 and 2017. In states where NPs enjoy full-practice authority, the NP growth rate is even higher at 133%.

Highly trained NPs earn competitive salaries that far exceed those of other nurses. They also benefit from a higher level of autonomy in their patient care, especially in states where they have full-practice authority. NPs perform many of the same duties as physicians, without the extended educational and residency requirements, and are seen as the best solution to the country’s primary care physician shortage.