US pharmacies from the CMS NPPES register: fields, pharmacy types, method and prices by state.
How many pharmacies are in the US?
About 60,000 retail pharmacies operate in the United States. National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) data, analysed by the RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis, counted 60,755 pharmacies providing retail services in the 50 states and DC in June 2023. The Bureau of Labor Statistics count is close but measures something else: 59,585 private pharmacy and drug retailer establishments in the fourth quarter of 2025 (QCEW, NAICS 456110), a figure that generally leaves out pharmacies inside supermarkets and mass merchandisers, because BLS classes each worksite by its main business. The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) estimates that 18,960 of the country's pharmacies were independent community pharmacies in July 2025. The CMS NPPES register lists more, ~95,000 registered pharmacy addresses in the file of 2026-09-14, and that figure is an upper bound because it includes closed, long-term care, institutional and mail-order pharmacies.
NCPDP data analysed by the RUPRI Center counted 60,755 pharmacies providing retail services in the 50 states and DC in June 2023, down 3.9% from 63,218 in June 2018.
60,755BLS counted 59,585 pharmacy and drug retailer establishments in the fourth quarter of 2025, a close figure that classes each worksite by its main business, so pharmacy counters inside supermarkets and mass merchandisers are generally counted under the store's industry.
59,585NCPA estimates 18,960 independent community pharmacy locations as of July 2025, nearly 36% of all retail pharmacies.
18,960The CMS NPPES file lists ~95,000 registered pharmacy addresses of all kinds, an upper bound.
~95,000What counts as a pharmacy?
The figures on this page count different things, so they don't contradict each other. Our own counts are rounded; the others are quoted exactly.
Retail pharmacies
What it counts: Pharmacies providing retail services in the 50 states and DC, in NCPDP's pharmacy database
Latest figure: 60,755
Source and date: NCPDP data via RUPRI, June 2023
Pharmacy and drug retailer establishments
What it counts: Private worksites (establishments) in NAICS 456110 with employees covered by unemployment insurance, each classed by its main business; pharmacy counters inside other stores are generally counted under the store's industry
Latest figure: 59,585
Source and date: BLS QCEW, Q4 2025
Independent community pharmacies
What it counts: NCPA's estimate of independent community pharmacy locations
Latest figure: 18,960
Source and date: NCPA Digest, July 2025
Pharmacy organization NPIs
What it counts: Organization National Provider Identifiers with a pharmacy taxonomy (3336*) that are not deactivated; an upper bound
Latest figure: ~110,000
Source and date: CMS NPPES, 2026-09-14
Registered pharmacy addresses
What it counts: Distinct addresses (street + ZIP) of those NPIs; includes stale and duplicate addresses, so an upper bound
Latest figure: ~95,000
Source and date: CMS NPPES, 2026-09-14, our grouping
BLS gives each worksite one industry, based on its primary economic activity (BLS Handbook of Methods). A supermarket's or mass merchandiser's main business is not pharmacy, so a pharmacy counter inside one is generally counted under the store's industry rather than as a pharmacy. So the BLS and NCPDP figures are close, but they count different sets of pharmacies. NPPES counts registrations of every kind of pharmacy, and it keeps closed pharmacies until someone deactivates their numbers.
How many pharmacy addresses are in each state?
California has the most registered pharmacy addresses, followed by Texas, New York and Florida. The table counts addresses for every state and DC, with the rate per 100,000 residents and each state's share of the US.
| State | In the public register | Per 100,000 residents | Share of US total |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | ~8,700 | 22.1 | 9.1% |
| Texas | ~8,200 | 25.8 | 8.6% |
| New York | ~8,000 | 39.8 | 8.4% |
| Florida | ~7,500 | 32.2 | 7.9% |
| Pennsylvania | ~4,000 | 30.4 | 4.2% |
| Michigan | ~3,700 | 36.5 | 3.9% |
| North Carolina | ~3,300 | 29.9 | 3.5% |
| Georgia | ~3,200 | 27.9 | 3.3% |
| Ohio | ~3,200 | 26.5 | 3.3% |
| New Jersey | ~3,000 | 31.9 | 3.2% |
| Illinois | ~3,000 | 23.7 | 3.2% |
| Tennessee | ~2,200 | 29.9 | 2.3% |
| Virginia | ~2,100 | 24.0 | 2.2% |
| Alabama | ~1,800 | 35.6 | 1.9% |
| Missouri | ~1,800 | 28.9 | 1.9% |
| Louisiana | ~1,700 | 37.3 | 1.8% |
| Maryland | ~1,700 | 27.3 | 1.8% |
| Washington | ~1,700 | 21.4 | 1.8% |
| Kentucky | ~1,700 | 37.1 | 1.8% |
| Arizona | ~1,600 | 21.1 | 1.7% |
| Indiana | ~1,600 | 22.3 | 1.6% |
| South Carolina | ~1,500 | 27.5 | 1.6% |
| Wisconsin | ~1,500 | 25.5 | 1.6% |
| Massachusetts | ~1,500 | 20.4 | 1.5% |
| Minnesota | ~1,400 | 24.2 | 1.5% |
| Oklahoma | ~1,300 | 30.8 | 1.3% |
| Colorado | ~1,200 | 20.0 | 1.3% |
| Mississippi | ~1,100 | 37.9 | 1.2% |
| Arkansas | ~1,100 | 35.1 | 1.2% |
| Iowa | ~940 | 29.1 | 0.99% |
| Connecticut | ~930 | 25.3 | 0.98% |
| Oregon | ~900 | 21.1 | 0.95% |
| Kansas | ~860 | 28.9 | 0.9% |
| Utah | ~810 | 22.9 | 0.85% |
| West Virginia | ~770 | 43.5 | 0.81% |
| Nevada | ~760 | 23.1 | 0.79% |
| Nebraska | ~670 | 33.1 | 0.7% |
| Idaho | ~530 | 26.3 | 0.56% |
| Maine | ~460 | 32.4 | 0.48% |
| New Mexico | ~450 | 21.2 | 0.47% |
| Montana | ~380 | 33.5 | 0.4% |
| New Hampshire | ~340 | 23.9 | 0.35% |
| Hawaii | ~340 | 23.4 | 0.35% |
| Rhode Island | ~320 | 28.3 | 0.33% |
| South Dakota | ~290 | 30.5 | 0.3% |
| Delaware | ~270 | 25.1 | 0.28% |
| North Dakota | ~230 | 29.1 | 0.24% |
| Vermont | ~190 | 30.1 | 0.2% |
| District of Columbia | ~190 | 27.7 | 0.2% |
| Wyoming | ~180 | 31.1 | 0.19% |
| Alaska | ~160 | 22.0 | 0.17% |
Counts are rounded.
These are register counts from the CMS NPPES file of 2026-09-14, rounded. Rates use US Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025. States are assigned by the address on the record, which can be out of date.
Which states have the most pharmacy addresses per resident?
West Virginia has the most registered pharmacy addresses per resident, at 43.5 per 100,000, followed by New York (39.8) and Mississippi (37.9). Colorado has the fewest (20.0), then Massachusetts (20.4), with Arizona and Oregon tied at 21.1. Most of the high-rate states are in the South and Appalachia. We haven't tested why, and a state's rate also depends on how many of its pharmacies left stale records in the register.
Which types of pharmacy are in the register?
Community and retail pharmacies are the largest group, at more than half of all registered addresses. About three in ten addresses carry only the general pharmacy code, so the register doesn't say what kind of pharmacy they are. Long-term care pharmacies, which supply nursing homes and assisted living facilities, are the next largest type.
| Pharmacy type | Registered addresses |
|---|---|
| Community/Retail Pharmacy | ~57,000 |
| Pharmacy, type not given | ~28,000 |
| Long Term Care Pharmacy | ~8,500 |
| Clinic Pharmacy | ~1,600 |
| Specialty Pharmacy | ~1,300 |
| Home Infusion Therapy Pharmacy | ~1,200 |
| Compounding Pharmacy | ~1,200 |
| Institutional Pharmacy | ~870 |
| Mail Order Pharmacy | ~600 |
| Managed Care Organization Pharmacy | ~190 |
| Nuclear Pharmacy | ~30 |
Counts are rounded.
The table counts addresses by the type on each NPI's primary taxonomy. An address registered under more than one type is counted once in each row, so the rows add up to more than the total.
How many independent pharmacies are there?
NCPA estimates 18,960 independent community pharmacy locations as of July 2025, down from 18,984 in June 2024. It says independents make up nearly 36% of all retail pharmacies and that no single chain has more stores than all independents combined. NPPES can't separate independents from chain stores, because it has no ownership field.
Are pharmacies closing?
Yes, all three counts fell in their latest periods. BLS counted 2,126 fewer pharmacy and drug retailer establishments in the fourth quarter of 2025 than a year earlier, a drop of 3.4%. In NCPDP data, the RUPRI Center found that retail pharmacies fell from 63,218 in June 2018 to 60,755 in June 2023 (3.9%), and that rural ones fell faster, from 11,489 to 10,808 (5.9%). NCPA's independent count fell by 24 locations between June 2024 and July 2025.
How many pharmacists are in the US?
BLS counted 321,970 pharmacist jobs in May 2025 (OEWS, SOC 29-1051). The OEWS survey counts wage-and-salary jobs only and leaves out self-employed pharmacists and owners and partners in unincorporated firms. The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook gives a slightly higher figure, 325,200 pharmacist jobs in 2025, partly because it counts every class of worker, including the self-employed. The Handbook says pharmacies and drug retailers employ 37% of pharmacists and hospitals 32%.
Our register counts pharmacy organizations and their addresses, not pharmacists. Pharmacists register in NPPES as individuals under their own taxonomy, and we have not counted those records.
How current is the NPPES data?
Many pharmacy records are stale. A record's "last update date" is when the pharmacy or CMS last changed it, not when anyone checked it.
- Median record age: 5.0 years before the file date.
- Updated in the last 5 years: 50% of the records.
- Addresses with recent activity: ~50,000 of the ~95,000 registered pharmacy addresses have an NPI updated or added in the last 5 years. That isn't a floor on open pharmacies, since many open sites have no record touched in that time.
- New registrations: ~3,200 pharmacy NPIs were issued in the 12 months before the file date.
What these numbers don't show
Whether a particular address is open. Address counts come from registrations. We have not visited or called them.
Who owns a pharmacy. NPPES has no ownership or chain field. An organization's "authorized official" is a contact, not proof of ownership.
The type of about three in ten pharmacies. Their records carry only the general pharmacy code.
Pharmacies inside other stores, in the BLS figure. BLS generally counts supermarket and mass-merchandiser pharmacy counters under the store's industry, so its 59,585 leaves them out. It also leaves out pharmacies with no paid employees.
Pharmacists in the register. Every register count on this page is of pharmacies or addresses. The pharmacist figures come from BLS only.
Changes by state over time. This page reflects one NPPES file, so it shows no change by state.
LimitsDownload the data
pharmacies-register-2026-10.csvCSVCC BY 4.02026-10-04
nodilist.com, "How many pharmacies are in the US?", register counts from the CMS NPPES file of 14 September 2026 with BLS, NCPDP (via RUPRI) and NCPA figures, https://nodilist.com/pharmacies/how-many-pharmacies/.
- pharmacies-register-2026-10.csv: registered pharmacy addresses for the US and each state and DC, with the rate per 100,000 residents, the share of the US and the rank.
The CSV holds exact values; the tables on this page round them. It is licensed under CC BY 4.0. You can reuse it, including commercially, if you credit nodilist.com and link to this page.
Looking for pharmacy contacts?
The pharmacy email list is built from the same register and the pharmacies' own websites, one row per pharmacy location, with the source and last-verified date on every email. Its page has the register counts by state, the columns and the prices. You can order it nationwide or by state.
Pharmacy email listSources
- BLS, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 Q4, NAICS 456110 Pharmacies and drug retailers, private establishments and employment, https://data.bls.gov/cew/data/api/2025/4/industry/456110.csv (accessed 2026-10-03)
- RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis, Ullrich F. and Mueller K., Changes in Rural Pharmacy Presence 2023, Brief No. 2024-4 (August 2024, revised 2025-02-27), from NCPDP data, https://rupri.public-health.uiowa.edu/publications/policybriefs/2024/Rural_Pharmacy_Presence.pdf (accessed 2026-10-03)
- NCPA, NCPA Releases 2025 Digest Report, news release of 2025-10-19, https://ncpa.org/newsroom/news-releases/2025/10/19/ncpa-releases-2025-digest-report (accessed 2026-10-03)
- BLS, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 national estimates, pharmacists (SOC 29-1051, series OEUN000000000000029105101), national_M2025_dl.xlsx in https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip (accessed 2026-10-04)
- BLS, Technical Notes for May 2025 OEWS Estimates (scope: the survey does not include the self-employed, owners and partners in unincorporated firms), https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_tec.htm (accessed 2026-10-04)
- BLS, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Pharmacists (Number of Jobs, 2025), https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/pharmacists.htm, and OOH FAQs (OOH employment covers all classes of workers, including the self-employed), https://www.bls.gov/ooh/about/ooh-faqs.htm (accessed 2026-10-04)
- BLS, Handbook of Methods, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages: Concepts (establishment, industry by primary economic activity, coverage), https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cew/concepts.htm (accessed 2026-10-04)
- CMS, NPPES Data Dissemination V.2, file of 2026-09-14, organization NPIs with taxonomy codes 3336*, https://download.cms.gov/nppes/NPI_Files.html (accessed 2026-10-03)
- US Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 state population estimates (July 1, 2025), via FRED, for the rates per 100,000 residents (accessed 2026-10-03)