# Podiatrists

US SOC code 29-1081. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/29-1081

Also called: DPM, Doctor of podiatric medicine, Foot doctor, Foot and ankle surgeon, Podiatric surgeon.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **9,680** US podiatrists, with median pay of **$160,300** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2021, the May 2025 count is the highest. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/series/series14.htm) of **7,200** from 1970, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for podiatrists: AI wound imaging, 2015 to 2022.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=29-1081&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **28.6%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend.

## Podiatrists employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1895
- Latest US employment: 9,680 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [2]
- Latest US median pay: $160,300 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [4]
- Outlook: +2% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [19]

### All 25 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1970 | 7,200 (estimate) | $24,000 (estimate) | Est., CDC NCHS Series 14 [1] |
| 1974 | 7,500 (estimate) | n/a | Est., CDC NCHS Series 14 [1] |
| 2003 | 7,800 | $94,060 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [2] |
| 2004 | 7,550 | $94,400 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [2] |
| 2005 | 8,290 | $100,550 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [2] |
| 2006 | 9,020 | $108,220 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [2] |
| 2007 | 9,320 | $110,510 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [2] |
| 2008 | 9,670 | $113,560 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [2] |
| 2009 | 9,720 | $116,250 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [2] |
| 2010 | 9,310 | $118,030 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [2] |
| 2011 | 9,210 | $119,250 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [2] |
| 2012 | 9,090 | $116,440 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [2] |
| 2013 | 8,850 | $118,210 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [2] |
| 2014 | 8,910 | $120,700 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [2] |
| 2015 | 9,500 | $119,340 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [2] |
| 2016 | 9,800 | $124,830 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [2] |
| 2017 | 9,670 | $127,740 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [2] |
| 2018 | 9,500 | $129,550 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [2] |
| 2019 | 9,770 | $126,240 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [2] |
| 2020 | 9,710 | $134,300 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [2] |
| 2021 | 8,840 | $145,840 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [2] |
| 2022 | 9,320 | $148,720 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [2] |
| 2023 | 9,470 | $141,650 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [2] |
| 2024 | 9,520 | $152,800 | BLS OEWS May 2024 (employment) [2]; BLS OEWS May 2024 (pay) [5] |
| 2025 | 9,680 | $160,300 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [2] |

## Sources (79)

### Employment series

1. [CDC NCHS Series 14 — Trends in the Podiatric Profession (1970 and 1974 survey data)](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/series/series14.htm), CDC National Center for Health Statistics
2. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

3. [CDC NCHS Series 14 — Podiatry Manpower, 1970 (net income of active practitioners)](https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/series/series14.htm), CDC National Center for Health Statistics
4. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
5. [BLS OOH 2024-34 — Podiatrists: median annual wage $152,800 (May 2024)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/podiatrists.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Tool eras

6. [APMA Historical Highlights — professional formation 1895-1950](https://www.apma.org/about-apma/governance/who-we-are/historical-highlights-of-apma/), American Podiatric Medical Association
7. [Wikipedia — Podiatry (history section)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podiatry), Wikipedia
8. [Rosalind Franklin University — History of the Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine](https://www.rosalindfranklin.edu/academics/dr-william-m-scholl-college-of-podiatric-medicine/about-the-college/history/), Rosalind Franklin University
9. [Social Security Amendments of 1965 — Wikipedia (Section 1861(r) physician definition)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Security_Amendments_of_1965), Wikipedia / SSA
10. [Tekscan — Company history and F-Scan gait analysis system (founded 1987)](https://www.tekscan.com/products-solutions/systems/f-scan-system), Tekscan
11. [Aetrex — Albert AI foot scanner overview (background on digital scan evolution from 3D scanning generation)](https://www.aetrex.com/pages/technology), Aetrex
12. [ONC — Office-based physician EHR adoption: 42% in 2008 to 88% in 2021 (HITECH/Meaningful Use context)](https://www.healthit.gov/data/quickstats/office-based-physician-electronic-health-record-adoption), Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
13. [Podimetrics SmartMat — FDA-cleared remote temperature monitoring, 97% sensitivity, Series C $45M (2022)](https://podimetrics.com/diabetic-feet-ulcers/), Podimetrics
14. [Podimetrics Series C funding announcement 2022](https://podimetrics.com/newsevents/podimetrics-series-c-funding/), Podimetrics
15. [Swift Medical + APMA — AI wound imaging partnership for podiatrists](https://swiftmedical.com/swift-medical-partners-with-apma/), Swift Medical
16. [Net Health Tissue Analytics — AI wound analytics, FDA Breakthrough Device, 79% documentation time reduction](https://www.nethealth.com/tissue-analytics/), Net Health
17. [Heidi Health — AI ambient scribe, podiatrist use case, 34 extra days per year per clinician, ISO-42001 certified](https://www.heidihealth.com/use-case/podiatrist), Heidi Health
18. [ImageBiopsy Lab — IB Lab FROG launched November 2024, CE-MDR cleared, 17 automated foot X-ray measurements](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/imagebiopsy-lab-launches-ib-lab-frog-ai-powered-foot-measurements-for-orthopedic-insights-302302695.html), ImageBiopsy Lab

### Forecasts and exposure studies

19. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 29-1081 Podiatrists (2025: 10.0 thousand; 2035: 10.2 thousand; +2.0%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=29-1081&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
20. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 29-1081.00, human-rated β 0.286)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

21. [APMA Historical Highlights — founding of the Pedic Society of New York, 1895](https://www.apma.org/about-apma/governance/who-we-are/historical-highlights-of-apma/), American Podiatric Medical Association
22. [NYCPM — Our History (founded 1911 as New York School of Chiropody)](https://nycpm.touro.edu/about/our-history/), New York College of Podiatric Medicine
23. [Social Security Amendments of 1965 — Wikipedia (Section 1861(r) physician definition including DPM)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Security_Amendments_of_1965), Wikipedia / SSA
24. [Wikipedia — Podiatry (residency section: three-year minimum from July 2013)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podiatry), Wikipedia

### Predecessors & successors

25. [APMA Historical Highlights — 1895 Pedic Society of New York founding (professionalisation from trade)](https://www.apma.org/about-apma/governance/who-we-are/historical-highlights-of-apma/), American Podiatric Medical Association
26. [NYCPM — Our History (first podiatric school 1911, DPM programme history)](https://nycpm.touro.edu/about/our-history/), New York College of Podiatric Medicine

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Podiatrists (29-1081.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/29-1081.00), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS Occupational Outlook — Podiatrists, automation risk ~13%](https://willrobotstakemyjob.com/podiatrists), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS AI Impacts in Employment Projections 2025](https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2025/ai-impacts-in-bls-employment-projections.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Medscape — Using AI to Transform Diabetic Foot and Limb Preservation 2024](https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/using-ai-transform-diabetic-foot-and-limb-preservation-2024a100068w), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Heidi Health — AI scribe with podiatrist-specific use case, ISO-42001 certified, 34 extra days per year reclaimed per clinician](https://www.heidihealth.com/use-case/podiatrist), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Freed AI — 20,000 clinician users, $20M ARR as of April 2025, HIPAA-compliant SOAP notes](https://venturebeat.com/ai/freed-says-20000-clinicians-are-using-its-medical-ai-transcription-scribe-but-competition-is-rising-fast), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Podimetrics SmartMat — FDA-cleared remote temperature monitoring, detects 97% of developing plantar foot ulcers ~5 weeks before visible signs](https://podimetrics.com/diabetic-feet-ulcers/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Podimetrics $45M Series C — 2022, preventing diabetic amputations](https://podimetrics.com/newsevents/podimetrics-series-c-funding/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Net Health Tissue Analytics — CPT 4 automation built into wound care documentation workflow](https://www.nethealth.com/tissue-analytics/), accessed 2026-05-24

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.