General practice ownership

In 2024 there were approximately 7132 accredited general practices in Australia.¹³ Close to one in four practising GPs (24%) are practice owners. Of the respondents that indicated they were practice owners, 57% identified as men, 42% identified as women and 1% identified as non-binary or other.

Interest in becoming a practice owner continues to fall, with 82% of non-owner GPs saying they are not interested in owning a practice in the future. Encouragingly, GPs in training expressed the greatest interest in practice ownership, with 34% indicating they would like to own a practice in the future.

Among GP practice owners, the most common challenges are financial, including increasing business costs and business profitability overall. Staffing is the next most prominent challenge, specifically in relation to sourcing GPs, with seven in 10 owners indicating this is an issue for their practice.

For the first time since 2021, practice owner sentiment about the viability of their practice has improved notably, increasing from only 15% of practice owners saying they are not concerned about the viability of their practice in 2024 to 21% in 2025. While a positive outcome for the sector, levels of concern remain elevated relative to 2020 and 2021.