• 2024 Match® Results for Family Medicine

    The AAFP’s brief analysis of family medicine results from the annual National Resident Matching Program Main Residency Match® (NRMP Match) provides a snapshot of the incoming physician workforce at its most significant inflection point. These results do not account for other matching services, like the annual Military Match, private arrangements outside of the Match, or the Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program (SOAP). 

    Match Analysis

    Family Medicine Match Highlights

    Overall Outcomes for Family Medicine

    In the 2024 NRMP Match:
    • 4,595 medical students and graduates matched to family medicine residency programs. Here's the breakdown:
      • 1,535 U.S. allopathic medical school (MD) seniors
      • 1,493 osteopathic medical school (DO) seniors
      • 749 U.S. international medical graduates (IMGs)
      • 706 foreign IMGs
      • 68 previous graduates of U.S. MD-granting schools
      • 44 previous graduates of DO-granting schools
    • Family medicine offered 5,231 positions, 124 more than in 2023, and 13.6% of positions offered in all specialties. 
    • Family medicine residency positions were filled almost equally by U.S. MD seniors, DO seniors, and IMGs. Match results were fairly stable year-over-year for U.S. MD seniors, DO seniors, and U.S.-citizen IMGs. 
    • The number of U.S. MD seniors matching increased by 36 compared with the year prior. It remains significantly below—805 matches—the historical peak of 2,340 in 1997. Only 8.3% of matched U.S. MD seniors matched in family medicine.
    • The number of DO seniors matching to family medicine decreased by 21. The percentage of DO students matching to family medicine (20.1%) declined from 22.2% the year prior, more sharply than the historical trend.
    • Almost one-quarter (23.5%) of U.S. IMGs and 12% of foreign IMGs who matched to any specialty matched to family medicine. The number of foreign IMG applicants who matched in family medicine rose significantly compared with 2023 (706 vs. 562).
    • A total of 3,140 U.S. MD and DO seniors and graduates matched in family medicine.
    • Family medicine represents 12.8% of all U.S. students or graduates who matched in 2024.

    Family Medicine Residency Positions Offered and Filled

    These results are a combination of all PGY-1 positions that result in eligibility for licensure and board certification in family medicine. Those include family medicine-categorical and combined residency programs. Broken down:

    • 796 family medicine categorical programs offered 5,213 and filled 4,577 positions. The overall fill rate for family medicine-categorical programs was 87.8%.
    • 6 family medicine-psychiatry programs offered and filled 10 positions.
    • 3 emergency medicine-family medicine programs offered and filled 7 positions.
    • 1 family medicine-preventive medicine program offered and filled 1 position. 

    Call to Action

    Health care, education, and societal systems need to incentivize, recruit, and support a more diverse medical student population that better represents the U.S. population and those who are more likely to choose primary care careers and practice in underserved areas.

    • While the residency Match results reflect momentum for family medicine, the pace needs to accelerate in order to meet the demand for family medicine in the U.S.
    • The U.S. medical education system is far from delivering the primary care medical workforce needed in the country it serves, and whose taxpayers fund it.
    • The composition of residency training positions must reflect the composition of physicians needed in the workforce, and as such, needs to increase steeply in family medicine, other primary care specialties, and a few other specialties.
    • Substantial increases in the family medicine and primary care workforce—while also accounting for the composition, distribution, and quality of that workforce—are needed to improve the health of Americans and the sustainability of the health care system. 

    Family Medicine Match Trends: 2004 - 2024

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    Workforce Information and Resources

    • Strolling Through The Match – The AAFP's comprehensive guide to matching provides information from start to finish of the Match process, including the timeline, process, and tips on ranking programs and interviewing, and focuses entirely on careers in family medicine.
    • AAFP National Conference of Family Medicine Residents and Medical Students – This annual conference hosted by the AAFP gives medical students and residents an opportunity to explore the family medicine specialty and interact with thousands of peers, hundreds of residency programs, and leaders in family medicine.
    • FMIG Network – The AAFP’s Family Medicine Interest Group (FMIG) Network supports medical school student organizations to provide activities and programming that promote family medicine across the country and internationally.
    • Family Medicine Champions – This new certificate-granting AAFP program prepares educators, advisors, and students to educate and inspire the next generation of family physicians. 
    • Family Medicine – This special edition of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine’s journal covers progress toward student choice of family medicine.

    Download the Full Match Analysis

    Get an automatic, free download with AAFP insights on the Match results for family medicine. Learn about emerging workforce trends and what they mean for the future of health care. You'll also receive an email with a link to the analysis, plus the best practice guide with 10 strategies proven to support family medicine workforce development at U.S. medical schools.