A Guide to the Top Nurse Practitioner Specialties and NP Types

Nurse practitioners (NPs) are considered advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs), which means they have focused their education and clinical training on one specific area of medicine. Becoming a subject matter expert in a single specialty gives NPs the ability to provide an increased level of care to the patients they see every day. In this guide, we take a closer look at the top NP specialties to find the most popular and highest paying of them all.

Most Common Nurse Practitioner (NP) Specialties 

According to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), there are over 385,000 licensed NPs in the United States.

Here are the most common NP specializations by primary certification area according to a 2022 survey by the AANP:

1. Family: 70.3%
2. Adult-Gerontology Primary Care: 8.9%
3. Psychiatric/Mental Health: 6.5%
4. Adult-Gerontology Acute Care: 6.1%
5. Adult: 5.7%
6. Acute Care: 2.9%
7. Pediatrics-Primary Care: 2.4%
8. Women’s Health: 2.2%
9. Gerontology: 0.9%
10. Pediatrics-Acute Care: 0.6%
11. Neonatal: 0.5%

Highest Paying Nurse Practitioner (NP) Specialties

Some NP specialties make more money on average than others—here are the top four highest paying NP specialties by median total cash compensation, according to research conducted by consulting firm SullivanCotter in 2022 that was highlighted in Becker’s Hospital Review:

1. Pediatrics — Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine

NPs who specialize in neonatal medicine are few in number when compared to other specialties, but they make the most money on average. In fact, according to the research, neonatal-perinatal medicine NPs have a median total cash compensation of $144,461. Aside from the high pay, NPs choose this specialty because it gives them the opportunity to provide quality care for premature babies or seriously ill newborns. 

2. Emergency Medicine

Emergency medicine NPs work in hospital emergency units and urgent cares, helping patients with critical injuries get the treatment they need. This is not one of the most popular specializations for NPs, but similar to neonatal-perinatal medicine, it is one of the most lucrative. According to the research, emergency medicine NPs make a median total cash compensation of $137,280. 

3. Hospitalist — Internal Medicine

Internal medicine NP hospitalists work alongside physicians and other hospital staff to care for patients. According to the research, these NPs have a median total cash compensation of $128,483.

4. Psychiatry

Psychiatry is one of the more popular NP specialties—these medical professionals work to analyze, diagnose, and treat mental health illnesses in patients. According to the research, psych NPs have a median total cash compensation of $128,480.

Other Highest-Paying NP Specialties

Here’s a list of the next highest-paying NP specialties, according to the SullivanCotter research in Becker’s Hospital Review:

5. Oncology — Hematology and Oncology: $128,264
6. Urgent Care: $127,320
7. General Surgery: $127,133
8. Critical Care Medicine: $126,953
9. Internal Medicine: $126,239
10. Pediatrics — General: $125,924
11. Obstetrics/Gynecology: $123,594
12. Neurological Surgery: $122,343
13. Cardiology: $121,984
14. Endocrinology and Metabolism: $121,721
15. Family Medicine: $120,682
16. Orthopedic Surgery: $120,669
17. Pulmonology: $119,790
18. Neurology: $117,813
19. Gastroenterology: $116,329
20. Urology: $115,812

Barton NP Locum Tenens Jobs by Specialty

At Barton Associates, we connect locum tenens NPs of all specialties with facilities that are short-staffed or otherwise in need of extra hands. Here’s a non-comprehensive list of the top 10 most popular NP listings we’ve seen over the past 12 months, organized from most to fewest listings:

1. Family Practice 
2. Psychiatry
3. Urgent Care
4. Pediatrics
5. Internal Medicine
6. Hospitalist
7. Critical Care Medicine 
8. Occupational Medicine
9. Hematology/Oncology
10. Neonatology

How to Pursue an NP Specialty

To become an NP, a person must first be a licensed registered nurse (RN) and have a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (BSN). After that, a prospective NP must enroll in a graduate-level nursing program, choose a specialty, and pass a certification exam from an NP certification board. These certification exams test a provider’s knowledge in their chosen specialty. 

Become a Locum Tenens NP

As a locum tenens NP, you’ll be traveling across the country to facilities that are short-staffed, taking temporary assignments to maintain adequate levels of patient care. Reach out to our team today to get started, or check out our job board for our current list of open assignments.