Nurse practitioners claimed the top position in U.S. News & World Report's 2026 Best Jobs rankings, marking the third consecutive year the profession earned the No. 1 spot in three categories: Best Job, Best Health Care Job, and Best STEM Job, according to the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP).

U.S. News & World Report evaluated hundreds of occupations across factors including job market health, growth potential, wage potential, employment rates, job safety and stability, and work-life balance.

"Nurse practitioners continue to lead the nation not only in excellence and impact, but now for the third year running as the top job in America," said AANP President Valerie Fuller, PhD, DNP. "This extraordinary recognition reflects NPs' advanced clinical expertise, growing demand and the profound trust patients place in us every day. Across diverse care settings, NPs are improving access, advancing health outcomes and shaping the future of health care."

The ranking coincides with sustained public trust in nurse practitioners. A recent Gallup Poll found that Americans continue to rate nurses, including NPs, as the most honest and ethical profession, a position held for more than two decades.

"With workforce trust at the foundation of effective care delivery, the Gallup findings reinforce what patients and families experience daily: NPs bring integrity, compassion and excellence to every interaction," Fuller added.

Jamie Wilson, NP, a dermatology nurse practitioner, said the recognition validates what NPs experience in clinical practice daily. "When I see patients for skin cancer screenings or chronic conditions like psoriasis, I'm often their primary point of contact for months or even years," Wilson said. "That continuity builds trust, and it allows me to catch things early and coordinate care in ways that genuinely improve outcomes."

Wilson noted that the ranking may help address misconceptions about the NP role. "There's still a knowledge gap among some patients about what nurse practitioners can do," she said. "Rankings like this help reinforce that we're highly trained clinicians delivering evidence-based care, not a substitute for something else."

More than 461,000 licensed NPs practice nationwide, delivering patient-centered care across primary care, specialty care, and acute care settings. The NP workforce addresses the health needs of millions of Americans through prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and ongoing management of acute and chronic conditions.

Source: AANP