General practitioner vs primary care provider

The differences between general practitioners and primary care providers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a general practitioner has an average salary of $172,831, which is higher than the $35,422 average annual salary of a primary care provider.

The top three skills for a general practitioner include patients, diagnosis and internal medicine. The most important skills for a primary care provider are patients, internal medicine, and family practice.

General practitioner vs primary care provider overview

	General Practitioner	Primary Care Provider
Yearly salary	$172,831	$35,422
Hourly rate	$83.09	$17.03
Growth rate	7%	36%
Number of jobs	64,698	103,863
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	4	-

What does a general practitioner do?

A General Practitioner provides primary and continuing medical care for patients within their community. They are responsible for diagnosing patients, checking patients results, and providing treatment as required.

What does a primary care provider do?

Primary Care Providers, also known as general practitioners instead of specialists, are doctors trained to be the first point of contact for a patient entering the health care system. They diagnose, treat, and prevent a broad range of injuries and illnesses from allergies and colds to longer-term conditions such as Diabetes Mellitus. Their duties include performing lab tests to identify a condition, prescribing medications, checking for drug interactions, provide wound care, executing spirometry tests and electrocardiograms, and coordinating specialist care for your condition. A Primary Care Provider will also help create self-care plans prescribing a certain diet and recommending exercise routines.

General practitioner vs primary care provider salary

General practitioners and primary care providers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	General Practitioner	Primary Care Provider
Average salary	$172,831	$35,422
Salary range	Between $85,000 And $347,000	Between $21,000 And $58,000
Highest paying City	Oklahoma City, OK	Santa Rosa, CA
Highest paying state	Mississippi	Connecticut
Best paying company	Altru Health System	AstraZeneca
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between general practitioner and primary care provider education

There are a few differences between a general practitioner and a primary care provider in terms of educational background:

	General Practitioner	Primary Care Provider
Most common degree	Doctoral Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Most common major	Medicine	Nursing
Most common college	Duke University	-

General practitioner vs primary care provider demographics

Here are the differences between general practitioners' and primary care providers' demographics:

	General Practitioner	Primary Care Provider
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 60.9% Female, 39.1%	Male, 26.8% Female, 73.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.7% Asian, 19.1% White, 61.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 10.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 19.9% Asian, 9.7% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	13%	7%

Differences between general practitioner and primary care provider duties and responsibilities

General practitioner example responsibilities.

Shadow and note specific medical cases as well as participated in patient diagnosis and treatment plan discussions
Evaluate a variety of medical conditions and afflictions, including making comprehensive diagnosis and specifying treatment plans.
Serve as initial contact to hospital patients; conduct thorough patient assessments and coordinate referrals to appropriate physicians base on findings
Assist in major elective and emergency surgeries such as appendectomies, exploratory laparotomy, thyroid surgery, hysterectomy and cesarean operations.
Collect and dispatch blood samples according to national malaria eradication and sputum samples for national tuberculosis control program.

Primary care provider example responsibilities.

Manage provider network to include verifying claims and benefits for healthcare providers/members and insurance companies.
Work alongside ABA therapists to continue to apply appropriate behavioral techniques.
Examine patients and carefully analyze test results and information gather during examinations to properly diagnose illnesses and diseases.
Used strong oral and written communications skills to develop and maintain effective relationships with patients, co-workers and international medical professionals.
Provide caring companionship to developmentally disabled/elderly residents.
Assist with toileting, including bedpans, urinals and commode chairs.

General practitioner vs primary care provider skills

Common general practitioner skills

Patients, 32%
Diagnosis, 7%
Internal Medicine, 6%
Outpatient Clinic, 5%
Emergency Room, 5%
Oral Surgery, 4%

Common primary care provider skills

Patients, 31%
Internal Medicine, 13%
Family Practice, 12%
Patient Care, 11%
Urgent Care, 10%
NP, 4%

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General Practitioner vs Primary Care Provider

Updated January 8, 2025

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