Health data published annually by the OECD helps compare how many new nurses are emerging from education systems relative to population size — an important early indicator of future workforce supply. While graduate numbers provide insight into the strength of a country's education pipeline, they represent only one stage of the workforce journey.
Nursing graduates per 100,000 population
| 2013 | 2023 |
Australia | 74.8 | 112.2 |
United States | 63.4 | 72.7 |
New Zealand | 44.3 | 53.3 |
OECD37 | 38.1 | 43.2 |
United Kingdom² | 31.4 | 43.0 |
Canada¹ ² | 34.1 | 31.9 |
Italy | 21.7 | 17.3 |
Source: Health at a Glance 2025 - Figure 8.21. Nursing graduates, 2023 and 2013 (or nearest year), 1. Data include only professional nursing graduates. 2. Latest data from 2022.
From the data, we can see that some countries have reduced their number of nursing graduates relative to population, including Italy and Canada, while others have experienced significant growth. Australia recorded the strongest increase among the selected countries, rising from 74.8 graduates per 100,000 population in 2013 to 112.2 in 2023. The United Kingdom also saw a substantial increase over the same period.
However, graduate numbers alone do not determine workforce capacity. The number of nurses entering the profession ultimately depends on how many graduates complete registration, enter clinical practice and remain in the workforce over time.
Practising nurses per 1,000 population
| 2013 | 2023 |
Australia¹ | 11.1 | 13.0 |
United States¹ ² | 11.1 | 12.4 |
New Zealand | 10.1 | 11.7 |
Canada¹ | 9.5 | 10.0 |
OECD37 | 8.1 | 9.2 |
United Kingdom¹ | 7.9 | 9.1 |
Italy | 5.1 | 6.9 |
Source: OECD Health Statistics 2025 1. Associate professional nurses with a lower level of qualifications make up between 15% and 30% in Australia, Canada, Hungary, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. 2. Includes nurses working in the health sector as managers, educators, researchers and similar.
The second indicator provides a broader picture of nursing workforce capacity by comparing the number of practising nurses relative to population.
Across the selected OECD countries, practising nurse density increased between 2013 and 2023. Australia recorded the largest increase, from 11.1 to 13.0 practising nurses per 1,000 population, consistent with its strong graduate pipeline. New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom also expanded their nursing workforces over the decade.
Canada experienced only modest workforce growth, reflecting relatively flat graduate numbers over the same period. Italy presents a different picture, with practising nurse density increasing despite a decline in nursing graduates, demonstrating that workforce growth is influenced by more than domestic education alone.
Together, these indicators suggest that many OECD countries have expanded both their nursing education pipelines and practising workforce over the past decade. However, graduate numbers represent only the beginning of the workforce journey. Long-term workforce sustainability also depends on factors such as retention, international recruitment, workforce participation and changing models of healthcare delivery. As many health systems continue to shift care beyond hospitals into community, primary care and aged care settings, demand for nurses is likely to continue evolving alongside workforce supply.
