Healthcare Practitioners
Acupuncturists
Also called: Acupuncture Doctor, Acupuncture Physician, Acupuncture Provider, Acupuncturist
US median pay
$76,040
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+8.6%
faster than average
Openings a year (US)
800
14,800 employed
Typical entry education
Master's degree
Preparation 5/5 · Extensive preparation
What this job is
Diagnose, treat, and prevent disorders by stimulating specific acupuncture points within the body using acupuncture needles. May also use cups, nutritional supplements, therapeutic massage, acupressure, and other alternative health therapies.
What they do day to day
- Maintain and follow standard quality, safety, environmental, and infection control policies and procedures.
- Treat patients using tools, such as needles, cups, ear balls, seeds, pellets, or nutritional supplements.
- Adhere to local, state, and federal laws, regulations, and statutes.
- Identify correct anatomical and proportional point locations based on patients' anatomy and positions, contraindications, and precautions related to treatments, such as intradermal needles, moxibustion, electricity, guasha, or bleeding.
- Develop individual treatment plans and strategies.
- Insert needles to provide acupuncture treatment.
- Evaluate treatment outcomes and recommend new or altered treatments as necessary to further promote, restore, or maintain health.
- Collect medical histories and general health and lifestyle information from patients.
- Maintain detailed and complete records of health care plans and prognoses.
- Educate patients on topics, such as meditation, ergonomics, stretching, exercise, nutrition, the healing process, breathing, or relaxation techniques.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Social Perceptiveness3.8/5
- Service Orientation3.8/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.5/5
- Complex Problem Solving3.2/5
- Coordination3.1/5
- Time Management3.0/5
- Systems Evaluation2.9/5
- Systems Analysis2.9/5
Knowledge
- Customer and Personal Service4.5/5
- Medicine and Dentistry4.1/5
- Psychology3.8/5
- Biology3.7/5
- English Language3.6/5
- Therapy and Counseling3.5/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 5 of 5 — Extensive preparation. Usually a graduate degree (master's, PhD, MD, JD) and extensive experience.
Typical entry education (BLS): Master's degree.
Highest education of people in this job:
- Master's degree68%
- Doctoral degree14%
Who this job suits
Mostly Social
Helping, teaching and caring for people
Investigative
Ideas, research and solving problems
Realistic
Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.