Top 58 Countries by Doctors per 1,000 People, 2026 Snapshot
Top 58 Countries by Doctors per 1,000 People, Based on Official 2023 WDI Data
This ranking compares countries by physicians per 1,000 people using World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS. The ranking is based on World Bank World Development Indicators, where the measure draws on Global Health Workforce Statistics, WHO, OECD and country reporting.
This 2026 snapshot uses official 2023 values only. It ranks 58 countries with a 2023 country-level value for the same indicator and unit. Countries without a 2023 value are not mixed in from older years, so the page is Top 58 rather than Top 100.
Unit: physicians per 1,000 people. Direction: higher values rank higher. The ranking uses World Bank WDI as the source for the country values shown in the table.
In this 2023 WDI set, Georgia ranks first with 5.64 physicians per 1,000 people, followed by Austria at 5.52 and Argentina at 5.11. The lowest country in this table is Niger at 0.04.
Countries are ordered before rounding, so two values that look the same in the table can still have different ranks.
Georgia ranks first among countries with a 2023 WDI value.
Niger is the lowest country in this same-year 2023 set.
Only country-level 2023 values are included; older years are excluded.
Physicians per 1,000 people, World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS.
Overview: what doctors per 1,000 people means
Doctors per 1,000 people is a physician-density measure. It compares the number of physicians with population size, which makes it more useful for international comparison than a simple count of doctors.
The World Bank indicator includes generalist physicians and specialist medical practitioners. It does not count the full healthcare workforce, so nurses, midwives, pharmacists, dentists, community health workers and hospital staff are outside this specific metric.
The measure is best read as a health-workforce capacity signal. It does not show whether doctors are evenly distributed inside a country, whether appointments are fast, whether care is affordable, or whether rural and remote areas have the same access as major cities.
Top 10 countries by doctors per 1,000 people
The top ten are heavily concentrated in Europe and Central Asia, while Argentina is the highest Latin American country in this 2023 WDI table. The gap between the first five countries and the rest of the list is still meaningful after rounding.
Top 10 countries by physicians per 1,000 people, WDI 2023
| Rank | Entity | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia | 5.64 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 2 | Austria | 5.52 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 3 | Argentina | 5.11 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 4 | Andorra | 5.07 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 5 | Norway | 4.98 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 6 | Belarus | 4.72 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 7 | San Marino | 4.63 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 8 | Iceland | 4.37 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 9 | Poland | 4.03 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 10 | Moldova | 4.02 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
Values are physicians per 1,000 people. Countries are sorted before rounding.
Chart: Top 20 countries by physician density
The bars use the same values as the ranking table. Georgia sets the scale at 5.64 physicians per 1,000 people, and Canada is the 20th country in the chart at 2.82.
Methodology
The metric is physicians per 1,000 people. The ranking uses World Bank WDI indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS. World Bank describes the measure as drawing on Global Health Workforce Statistics, WHO, OECD and country data.
Metric and unit
The page ranks physician density, not total doctor counts. The unit is physicians per 1,000 people, so countries with different population sizes can be compared on a per-capita basis.
Inclusion rule
A country is included only if it has a 2023 country-level WDI value for SH.MED.PHYS.ZS. Aggregates and countries without a 2023 value are excluded to keep the ranking on one year.
Ranking rule
Countries are sorted from highest to lowest before the values are rounded for display. This keeps the order accurate when two displayed values look similar.
Comparability limits
National systems may report practicing physicians, professionally active physicians or licensed physicians differently. Registration rules and private-sector coverage can affect cross-country comparability.
The World Bank definition covers generalist physicians and specialist medical practitioners. It does not include nurses, midwives, pharmacists, dentists or community health workers. For a fuller view of health-system staffing, physician density should be read together with other workforce and access indicators.
Missing 2023 country values are not filled from older years. This avoids mixing reporting periods, but it also means the table is not a full global Top 100. It is a same-year ranking for the 58 countries with 2023 WDI values in this indicator.
Differences between countries can reflect real workforce density and reporting practice. A country with a high value may still have regional shortages, waiting-time problems or affordability barriers, while a lower-density country may have different models of primary care and task sharing.
Why countries differ in doctors per 1,000 people
Physician density is shaped by medical education capacity, public-sector hiring, private practice, migration of health professionals, retirement patterns and the way each country records doctors in official statistics.
Training and retention
Countries with larger medical-school pipelines and stronger retention of trained doctors tend to show higher density. Emigration of doctors can push the value down even when training capacity exists.
Small-population effects
Small countries can rank high because a modest number of physicians produces a large per-1,000 value. The metric is useful, but it should not be read as total health-system size.
Urban and rural access
A national average can hide large internal gaps. Doctors may be concentrated in capital cities, private clinics or specialist hospitals while rural areas remain underserved.
Reporting differences
Some systems emphasize practicing doctors, while others may include licensed or professionally active physicians. These differences are one reason the table should be read as a high-level comparison.
Main ranking: Top 58 countries by doctors per 1,000 people
Use the controls to search by country, filter by World Bank region, change sort order or switch between Top 10, Top 20 and all 58 countries.
Top 58 countries by physicians per 1,000 people, WDI 2023
| Rank | Entity | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia | 5.64 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 2 | Austria | 5.52 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 3 | Argentina | 5.11 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 4 | Andorra | 5.07 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 5 | Norway | 4.98 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 6 | Belarus | 4.72 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 7 | San Marino | 4.63 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 8 | Iceland | 4.37 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 9 | Poland | 4.03 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 10 | Moldova | 4.02 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 11 | Ireland | 3.88 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 12 | Israel | 3.80 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 13 | Kazakhstan | 3.75 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 14 | Ukraine | 3.53 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 15 | Saudi Arabia | 3.41 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 16 | Chile | 3.33 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 17 | United Kingdom | 3.30 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 18 | Qatar | 3.02 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 19 | United Arab Emirates | 2.99 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 20 | Canada | 2.82 | North America; WDI 2023. |
| 21 | Montenegro | 2.78 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 22 | Colombia | 2.54 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 23 | Dominican Republic | 2.43 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 24 | Brazil | 2.36 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 25 | Malaysia | 2.34 | East Asia & Pacific; WDI 2023. |
| 26 | Turkmenistan | 1.93 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 27 | Tajikistan | 1.87 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 28 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 1.81 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 29 | Palau | 1.81 | East Asia & Pacific; WDI 2023. |
| 30 | Peru | 1.69 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 31 | El Salvador | 1.62 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 32 | Kyrgyz Republic | 1.57 | Europe & Central Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 33 | Suriname | 1.36 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 34 | Sri Lanka | 1.14 | South Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 35 | Nepal | 1.01 | South Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 36 | Cabo Verde | 0.73 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 37 | Bangladesh | 0.72 | South Asia; WDI 2023. |
| 38 | Eswatini | 0.56 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 39 | Indonesia | 0.52 | East Asia & Pacific; WDI 2023. |
| 40 | Jamaica | 0.46 | Latin America & Caribbean; WDI 2023. |
| 41 | Nigeria | 0.38 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 42 | Botswana | 0.38 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 43 | Afghanistan | 0.32 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 44 | Kenya | 0.29 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 45 | Ghana | 0.27 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 46 | Solomon Islands | 0.24 | East Asia & Pacific; WDI 2023. |
| 47 | Benin | 0.22 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 48 | Mali | 0.19 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 49 | Cote d'Ivoire | 0.17 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 50 | Ethiopia | 0.14 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 51 | Zimbabwe | 0.14 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 52 | Senegal | 0.11 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 53 | Yemen, Rep. | 0.10 | Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; WDI 2023. |
| 54 | Gambia, The | 0.09 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 55 | Chad | 0.09 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 56 | Central African Republic | 0.07 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
| 57 | Papua New Guinea | 0.06 | East Asia & Pacific; WDI 2023. |
| 58 | Niger | 0.04 | Sub-Saharan Africa; WDI 2023. |
The 2026 title refers to the page snapshot, not to estimated 2026 values. All ranked values come from 2023 WDI entries for the same indicator and unit.
Insights from the Top 58 doctors-per-capita ranking
Upper range
Only five countries in the table are near or above 5 physicians per 1,000 people: Georgia, Austria, Argentina, Andorra and Norway. This separates the leading group from the rest of the list.
Middle range
Countries ranked 20 to 35 sit between 2.82 and 1.01 physicians per 1,000 people. This broad middle includes North America, Latin America, South Asia and parts of Europe and Central Asia.
Low-density range
Twenty-three countries in the table are below 1 physician per 1,000 people. Most of these are in Sub-Saharan Africa, but the group also includes countries in East Asia & Pacific and South Asia.
Regional pattern
Europe and Central Asia dominate the top 20, while Sub-Saharan Africa is concentrated toward the bottom. This pattern points to large differences in workforce supply, training systems and retention.
What this ranking means for readers
A higher value generally means more doctors relative to population, which can support access to diagnosis, specialist referral and treatment. It does not prove that care is equally available in every region of the country.
This ranking is most useful as a first screen for physician workforce density. To understand healthcare access more fully, compare it with nurses and midwives, hospital beds, health spending, rural access, out-of-pocket costs and health outcomes.
The main interpretation risk is treating physician density as a complete healthcare-quality score. Countries can have high physician density and still face waiting times, affordability problems or uneven distribution between cities and rural areas.
FAQ
Which country has the most doctors per 1,000 people in this ranking?
Georgia ranks first in this 2023 WDI table, with 5.64 physicians per 1,000 people.
Are these 2026 doctor-density values?
No. This is a 2026 snapshot based on official 2023 WDI values for World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS.
Why is this Top 58 instead of Top 100?
The ranking includes only countries with a 2023 value for this indicator. Countries without a 2023 value are excluded instead of being mixed in from older years.
Does the metric include nurses and midwives?
No. This indicator counts physicians, including generalist and specialist medical practitioners. Nurses and midwives are tracked separately.
Does a high value mean better healthcare quality?
Not by itself. Physician density is a workforce-capacity signal. It does not measure quality, waiting time, affordability, hospital capacity or rural access.
Why can countries with the same displayed value have different ranks?
The table rounds values for readability. Countries are ordered before rounding, so two countries that both display as 0.38 or 1.81 can still be ordered differently.
What can make physician-density data hard to compare?
Countries can differ in whether they count practicing, professionally active or licensed physicians. Reporting coverage, private-sector records and administrative systems can also differ.
What should I compare this ranking with?
For a fuller picture, compare physician density with nurses and midwives, hospital beds, health spending, rural access, insurance coverage and health outcomes.
Sources
World Bank Data — Physicians per 1,000 people
Primary source for the ranked 2023 country values and indicator code SH.MED.PHYS.ZS.
World Bank DataBank — World Development Indicators
Used to verify the WDI indicator environment, year coverage and country-level values.
World Bank definition — SH.MED.PHYS.ZS
Definition source for physician coverage, reporting sources and comparability notes.
WHO Global Health Observatory — health workforce
Context source for international health-workforce reporting and interpretation of physician-density data.
