Who are the UK doctors?
The UK medical profession has changed more in the last decade than at any time in its history. In 2024, for the first time since the medical register began more than 165 years ago, female licensed doctors outnumbered male doctors: 164,440 women against 164,195 men. A year earlier, in 2023, the number of doctors from ethnic minority backgrounds exceeded the number of white doctors for the first time. The profession is also getting younger, as record numbers of new doctors join from UK medical schools and from abroad. This report sets out the gender, age and ethnicity of UK doctors and how they vary by specialty and nation. For the size of the workforce, see our overview of doctors in the United Kingdom.
The figures come mainly from the General Medical Council (GMC), which records the characteristics of every doctor on the medical register. Most data refer to licensed doctors, who are entitled to practise in the UK. Ethnicity is self-reported, and about 5 percent of doctors have not recorded it. The most detailed breakdowns by age and ethnicity currently available are for 2023, published in the GMC Workforce report 2024.
Women now make up the majority
The share of women among licensed doctors has risen steadily. In 2017, 114,575 of 242,642 licensed doctors were women, 47.2 percent. By 2023 the figure had grown to 154,826 out of 313,829, or 49.3 percent. In 2024 women became the majority, with 50.04 percent of licensed doctors as of February 2025. The trend reflects decades of medical school intakes in which women outnumber men: 60 percent of medical students starting in 2023/24 were women, and so were 52 percent of doctors who joined the register in 2023.
A historic milestone: Women became the majority of licensed doctors in 2024.
The balance differs across the UK. In 2024, women made up 54.8 percent of licensed doctors in Scotland and 53.5 percent in Northern Ireland, but 49.7 percent in England and 47.3 percent in Wales. Because the full register also includes doctors without a licence, the GMC reported that men still made up 50.5 percent of all doctors on the register at the end of 2025.
Scotland leads: Almost 55 percent of licensed doctors in Scotland are women.
Gender by specialty and career stage
Women are now the majority in general practice and in several hospital specialties, but remain a minority in others. In 2024, 63 percent of doctors in obstetrics and gynaecology were women, 61 percent in paediatrics and 59 percent in public health, according to the GMC. In general practice the share rose from 48 percent in 2012 to 58 percent in 2024. Surgery remains the most male-dominated specialty, with women making up 17 percent of licensed doctors, although that is almost double the 9 percent of 2012. Emergency medicine (37 percent), ophthalmology (35 percent) and anaesthetics and intensive care (38 percent) also have more men than women.
Rising everywhere: The share of women grew in every specialty group, but surgery remains 83 percent male.
Career stage shows where the change is coming from. In 2024, women made up 58 percent of doctors in training and 58 percent of doctors on the GP register, but only 40 percent of doctors on the specialist register, where the most senior hospital doctors are. As the current generation of trainees reaches consultant level, the specialist register is likely to become more balanced. The number of women entering GP training is especially high: 60 percent of GP trainees in 2023 were women. Our report on the GP workforce covers general practice in detail.
| Group (2024) | Share of women |
|---|---|
| All licensed doctors | 50% |
| Doctors in training | 58% |
| GP register | 58% |
| Specialist register | 40% |
| Medical school intake 2023/24 | 60% |
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Age profile of UK doctors
The UK medical workforce is relatively young. In 2023 the largest age group was doctors in their thirties, with 107,267 licensed doctors or 34.2 percent of the total. There were 77,093 doctors in their forties (24.6 percent), 53,123 in their fifties (16.9 percent) and 49,577 in their twenties (15.8 percent). Doctors aged 60 to 69 numbered 22,279 (7.1 percent) and those aged 70 or over 4,490 (1.4 percent).
Growth at both ends: Doctors in their thirties grew by 28 percent between 2019 and 2023, and doctors aged 60 to 69 by 25 percent.
Growth has been fastest among younger and older doctors. Between 2019 and 2023 the number of licensed doctors in their thirties rose by 28 percent and those in their twenties by 24 percent, reflecting larger medical school intakes and international recruitment. Doctors aged 60 to 69 and those aged 70 and over also grew by 25 percent each, possibly reflecting senior doctors staying in practice for longer. Doctors in their forties and fifties grew more slowly, by 13 and 12 percent. Younger doctors are, however, also more likely to leave UK practice, as our report on doctors leaving the UK shows, and doctors in training report some of the highest burnout levels, covered in our report on burnout among UK doctors.
Ethnic diversity of the profession
The UK medical profession is one of the most ethnically diverse professions in the country. In 2023, 147,458 licensed doctors, 47.0 percent, identified as white, while 149,385, 47.6 percent, came from ethnic minority backgrounds. Asian and Asian British doctors were the largest ethnic minority group with 100,934 doctors (32.2 percent), followed by Black and Black British doctors with 21,288 (6.8 percent), doctors from other ethnic groups with 18,599 (5.9 percent) and doctors of mixed ethnicity with 8,564 (2.7 percent). Ethnicity was not recorded for 16,986 doctors.
A diverse profession: Ethnic minority doctors outnumbered white doctors for the first time in 2023.
The change has been rapid. Between 2017 and 2023, the number of Asian doctors rose from 63,533 to 100,934 and Black doctors from 9,739 to 21,288, more than doubling. White doctors increased from 135,916 to 147,458. In 2019 to 2023 alone, Black doctors and doctors from other ethnic groups increased by 67 percent each and Asian doctors by 41 percent, while white doctors grew by 6 percent. Much of this growth reflects recruitment of doctors who qualified abroad, especially from South Asia and Africa.
Black doctors more than doubled: From 9,739 in 2017 to 21,288 in 2023.
Ethnicity and seniority in the NHS
Diversity is lower in senior posts. According to the NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard, staff from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds made up 48.7 percent of the medical workforce in NHS trusts in England in March 2024, but 41.0 percent of consultants. In non-consultant specialist grades, such as specialty doctors, the share was 64.3 percent. Gaps in progression and in how concerns are handled are a focus for both the NHS and the GMC: employers have historically referred ethnic minority doctors to the regulator at higher rates, an issue examined in our report on GMC fitness to practise statistics and in this analysis of referral disparities for ethnic minority and overseas-trained doctors.
Fewer at the top: BME doctors make up 48.7 percent of the medical workforce but 41.0 percent of consultants.
Outlook
The trends are set to continue. With women making up around 60 percent of medical students and trainees, the female share of the profession will keep rising, and the specialist register will gradually become more balanced. The ethnic make-up of the profession will depend heavily on international recruitment, which may slow as UK graduates are prioritised for training posts. Our reports on international doctors in the UK, specialty training and doctor pay explore these related trends.
UK doctor demographics in numbers
- Women became the majority of licensed doctors in 2024, at 50.04 percent.
- In Scotland 54.8 percent of licensed doctors are women; in Wales 47.3 percent.
- Surgery remains 83 percent male, while 63 percent of obstetricians and gynaecologists are women.
- Doctors in their thirties are the largest age group, at 34.2 percent in 2023.
- Ethnic minority doctors (47.6 percent) outnumbered white doctors (47.0 percent) for the first time in 2023.
- BME doctors make up 41.0 percent of NHS consultants in England, against 48.7 percent of the medical workforce.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. In 2024, for the first time, women made up the majority of licensed doctors: 164,440 women against 164,195 men, or 50.04 percent.
17 percent of licensed doctors in surgery were women in 2024, up from 9 percent in 2012, according to the GMC.
Obstetrics and gynaecology, where 63 percent of licensed doctors were women in 2024, followed by paediatrics at 61 percent and public health at 59 percent.
In 2023, 47.0 percent of licensed doctors were white, 32.2 percent Asian or Asian British, 6.8 percent Black or Black British, 2.7 percent mixed and 5.9 percent from other groups. Ethnicity was not recorded for 5.4 percent.
In 2023 ethnic minority doctors (47.6 percent) outnumbered white doctors (47.0 percent) for the first time, according to the GMC.
The largest age group is 30 to 39, with 34.2 percent of licensed doctors in 2023. About 8.5 percent are aged 60 or over.
Yes. 58 percent of doctors on the GP register were women in 2024, up from 48 percent of GPs in 2012, and 60 percent of GP trainees in 2023 were women.
Partly. BME doctors made up 48.7 percent of the medical workforce in NHS trusts in England in 2024, but 41.0 percent of consultants.
General Medical Council - More female than male doctors for first time ever in the UK, March 2025.
General Medical Council - Workforce report 2025.
General Medical Council - Workforce report 2025 data annexe.
General Medical Council - Workforce report 2024.
General Medical Council - Workforce report 2022.
General Medical Council - Annual report and accounts 2025.
NHS England - Workforce Race Equality Standard 2024 data analysis report.