Infographics. General Practitioners: More Women, Younger... How the Profession Has Evolved in 10 Years

Does it seem harder to find a general practitioner than before? It's not surprising: their number has fallen sharply over the past 10 years , according to data published Monday by the Directorate for Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics (Drees). On January ^1, 2012, there were 101,435 general practitioners in France as a whole. By January ^1, 2025, there were only 100,019. Medical density—the number of doctors per 100,000 inhabitants—has fallen by 6% in 13 years nationwide.

The haemorrhage is even more significant in Île-de-France (-18%) and in Centre-Val de Loire (-13%). Only Pays-de-la-Loire (+1.8%), Brittany (+11.6%) and Corsica (+4.9%) saw their medical density increase between 2012 and 2025. However, the figures are more encouraging in recent years. Thus, between 2024 and 2025, the number of general practitioners increased in all regions of France.

Although their numbers have declined, general practitioners are younger than before - which suggests an improvement in medical density in the short and medium term. In 2012, the average age of general practitioners was 51.1 years across France. Today, it is 50.4 years. The number of general practitioners aged under 40 has doubled in 13 years (30.32% in 2025 compared to 15.7% in 2012).

Some regions are exceptions: in Île-de-France, Centre-Val de Loire, and Mayotte, the average age of general practitioners has increased. Brittany has the youngest population of general practitioners, with an average age of 47.2 years. The oldest are in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (54.2 years).

The profession has also become more feminized: there are now more female general practitioners (52,452) than men (47,567). The proportion of women has thus increased from 41% in 2012 to 52% in 2025.

By 2025, most regions will have a number of female general practitioners equal to or greater than the number of male general practitioners. However, Hauts-de-France, Corsica, French Guiana, Réunion, and Mayotte still have a predominantly male population. In 2012, no region had more female general practitioners than male ones.

In 2025, on average, a general practitioner will practice 1.3 activities (1.1 in 2012). This activity remains predominantly private, even if the proportion of salaried doctors is increasing (+4.5% since 2012). Mixed activity, which combines private and salaried activities, is also more attractive: 9.6% of general practitioners will practice in a mixed practice in 2025 (4.7% in 2012).

Activity in health centers or health centers is also growing strongly, to the detriment of individual practice. The number of doctors practicing in health centers/health centers has doubled in 13 years (+2.1%), while the number of doctors practicing in individual practices has decreased by 10%.