The Medical Workforce Intelligence Report 2025, which analyses the clinically active medical workforce in Ireland, shows that in 2025, there were 5,017 GPs throughout Ireland, an increase of 5.3% from the 2024 figure.
The report is based on responses from doctors who renewed their registration on the Medical Register in 2025, provides quantitative analysis of demographics and divisional status, and details on employment, practice, medical disciplines and specialities. Doctors were also asked about hours spent in direct patient care, barriers to patient safety, and future career plans.
The research reveals that there are 617 GPs working in County Cork, which accounts for 12.3% of all GPs in the country.
The research also reveals that Iin 2025, there were 22,257 clinically active doctors practising medicine in Ireland, representing 75.6% of doctors who retained their place on the Medical Council Register, showing that the overall size of the Register does not directly reflect the number of doctors working on the ground. The proportion of clinically active female doctors rose to 47.6%, representing a slight but steady increase in recent years (47.2% in 2024, 47.0% in 2023).
Also, the mean age of doctors was 43.6 years, with approximately one in five (20.1%) aged 55 or older and approaching typical retirement age. The gender split was almost even across all age groups except the 55 or older cohort, where 66.0% were male.
49.9% of clinically active doctors were registered on the Specialist Division, and 31.6% on the General Division. There were 5,017 doctors self-reporting as General Practitioners, with GP numbers up 5.3% on the previous year. 78.9% of GPs were on the Specialist Division, and 19.3%on the General Division.
Almost one-third of doctors (30.7%) reported never experiencing difficulties providing patients with sufficient levels of care. However, more than one-quarter (27.6%) experienced such difficulties at least once a week or more often. The most commonly reported barriers identified by doctors were pressure on workloads, time spent on administration and bureaucracy, and overcrowding.
22.1% of doctors self-reported working more than 48 hours a week on average, a slight improvement on 2024 (23.1%). 9.3% reported spending more than 48 hours in direct patient care, down from 10.7% in 2024.
56.6% of doctors obtained their basic medical qualification in Ireland, 13.9% in the EU or UK, and 29.5% outside Ireland, the EU or the UK, continuing a year-on-year rise (27.8% in 2024, 25.7% in 2023). The most common country of qualification for international graduates was Pakistan with 41.7% of the international graduate cohort, followed by Sudan with 20.3% of the international graduate cohort.
A fifth of the GP workforce is approaching typical retirement age.
