Interpreter: how many are there, and how many are in private practice?

National totals

What this specialty covers

An Interpreter is a person who translates oral communication between two or more people. This includes translating from one language to another or interpreting sign language. An interpreter is necessary for medical care when the patient does not speak the language of the health care provider or when the patient has a disability involving spoken language.

Reading the sole-proprietor share

For interpreters, the sole-proprietor share indicates how many NPPES records are flagged as sole proprietors, not how many interpreters operate a private practice. The field is self-reported and is an imperfect proxy because it does not show whether an interpreter works independently, through an organization, part time, or in a particular care setting.

By state

New NPI registrations by year

Counts reflect the year each NPI was first issued, among records still active today. The final year is partial: this data covers through 2026-01-11.

Data notes

• The sole-proprietor field is self-reported by the provider in NPPES and is an imperfect proxy for private practice.
• A sole-proprietor count shown as <11 is suppressed: the true value is below 11, which could include zero.
• - Counts represent active NPI records, not necessarily unique interpreters, businesses, or full-time practitioners.
• - The national total includes records with Interpreter as the primary taxonomy; interpreters with another primary classification are not included.
• Providers are counted once, by their primary taxonomy code only.

Source: CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES) Data Dissemination file, FOIA-disclosable public data under CMS-6060-N. Aggregated by Hero EMR on 2026-08-03; deactivated NPIs excluded; specialty assigned from the primary taxonomy code (NUCC 25.1). Counts below 11 are suppressed. Individual providers are never published. All provider data pages.

Common questions