Who Works Locum Tenens (and Whether It Fits You)
By Cory Kleinschmidt
Physicians work locum tenens at every stage of a career, from the resident testing the waters to the veteran winding down. It’s a deliberate choice, not a fallback for physicians who can’t get hired.
About 57,000 physicians, 8% of the profession, were working locum tenens in 2024. Roughly a third of physicians have done it at some point (CHG, 2025 locum tenens report). It’s a mainstream way to practice, not a niche one.
Written for physicians. This guide is for MDs and DOs. Locum tenens works the same way for other clinicians, but licensing, scope and pay differ by profession, so nurse practitioners, physician assistants and CRNAs each get their own guide. Read the nurse practitioner guide, the physician assistant guide or the CRNA guide.
Why Do Physicians Choose Locum Tenens?
Money leads and schedule control is a close second. In its 2025 report, CHG found 47% of physicians work locums to supplement their income and 30% called the pay itself appealing. Control over their own schedule came next at 29% (CHG, 2025 report).
Those motives sort by career stage. Early on, it’s debt and job-sampling. Mid-career, it’s extra income or a reset. Late-career, it’s a way to keep working without the full-time load. The rest of this chapter walks through each.
Locum Tenens Fits Every Career Stage
There’s no single locum physician. The model works because it solves a different problem at each stage of a career. Here’s how each tends to use it.
Right Out of Training: Try Before You Buy and Attack the Debt
New physicians use locums to sample settings before signing a long contract and to pay down training debt fast. In 2024, 26% of physicians who worked locums did so while searching for a full-time position and 11% used it as a bridge straight out of training, residency or fellowship (CHG, 2025 report).
The debt is the other driver. For the Class of 2025, median medical education debt was $200,000, while median education debt among indebted graduates was $215,000 when premedical debt was included (AAMC, Class of 2025 debt card). Locum rates can help physicians pay down that debt faster than a first staff salary. Working locums also lets you test settings, geographies and call structures before you tie yourself to one. See the pay chapter for how the rates and 1099 mechanics work.
Mid-Career: Extra Income, a New Setting, or a Reset
Established physicians reach for locums to add income on top of a staff job, to work somewhere new, or to step back from a role that’s burning them out without leaving medicine. Supplementing income is the single most common reason physicians give overall at 47%. Another 10% say they take locums specifically to avoid overwork and burnout (CHG, 2025 report).
For a physician weighing whether to quit a job or just needing a break, a temporary assignment answers the question without burning the bridge. It often restores enough control over the schedule to make the work feel like medicine again.
Nearing Retirement: Dial Down Without Stopping
Locums lets late-career physicians cut back to the schedule they want, keep their skills and license current, then keep earning without the full-time commitment. In 2024, 7% of physicians working locums used it as a bridge to retirement (CHG, 2025 report). It’s one of the cleaner ways to phase out, a few weeks here and there instead of stopping cold on a single date.
The Specialties in Highest Demand
Demand is broad, but it concentrates where the physician shortage is worst. For 2026, the most-requested locum specialties are anesthesiology, cardiology, OB-GYN, family medicine, internal medicine, medical oncology, emergency medicine, radiology, gastroenterology and neurology (CompHealth, 2026 demand ranking). That list tracks the broader shortfall the AAMC projects, up to 86,000 physicians short by 2036 (AAMC, 2024 workforce report).
Demand also swings by geography. Rural and underserved areas run the widest coverage gaps, so the same specialty can be in far higher demand two states over. If your specialty is on that list or you’re willing to travel to where the need is, you’ll rarely be short of options.
Is Locum Tenens Right for You?
It tends to fit if you value flexibility over institutional belonging, you’re comfortable managing your own taxes and benefits and you can handle travel with some income variability. It fits less well if you need the security of a fixed salary and employer benefits, or you want deep roots in one practice and community.
None of that is permanent. It’s rarely a one-way door: 85% of physicians who work locums return to full-time employment afterward (CHG, 2025 report). Plenty move between locums and staff roles more than once. The point is to choose it on purpose, with the tradeoffs in view. If you decide it fits, how to get started walks through licensing and credentialing.
Key Takeaways
- About 57,000 physicians (8%) were working locum tenens in 2024. Roughly a third have worked locums at some point (CHG, 2025).
- Money leads the decision: 47% work locums to supplement income and 30% for the pay, with schedule control second at 29% (CHG, 2025).
- It fits every career stage: debt payoff and job-sampling early, extra income or a reset mid-career, a glide path near retirement.
- New physicians carry a median $200,000 in medical school debt and $215,000 in total education debt among indebted graduates (AAMC, Class of 2025); locum rates can help service it faster.
- Highest-demand 2026 specialties skew to anesthesiology, cardiology, OB-GYN, primary care, emergency medicine and radiology (CompHealth, 2026).
- It’s rarely permanent: 85% of physicians who work locums return to full-time work afterward (CHG, 2025).
Frequently Asked Questions
Who works locum tenens?
Physicians at every career stage, from those just out of training to physicians easing toward retirement. About 57,000, or 8% of physicians, were working locums in 2024. Roughly a third have worked locums at some point (CHG, 2025).
Can you do locum tenens right out of residency?
Yes. Many new physicians use it to sample practice settings and pay down training debt before committing to a permanent job. In 2024, 11% of physicians working locums used it as a bridge straight out of training (CHG, 2025).
Is locum tenens only for late-career doctors?
No. It’s common at every stage: early for debt and flexibility, mid-career for extra income or a reset, late as a glide path to retirement.
Which specialties are most in demand for locums?
For 2026, anesthesiology, cardiology, OB-GYN, family medicine, internal medicine, medical oncology, emergency medicine, radiology, gastroenterology and neurology lead (CompHealth, 2026).
Is working locums a step down for a physician?
No. It’s a deliberate strategy. Physicians most often cite financial reasons, 47% to supplement income and 30% for the pay, with schedule control close behind at 29% (CHG, 2025).
Can I switch between locums and a permanent job?
Yes, many physicians do, more than once. It’s rarely a one-way door: 85% of physicians who work locums return to full-time employment afterward (CHG, 2025).
Go Deeper
Up: The No-BS Guide to Locum Tenens.