The American pilot population, counted and hiring.
887,519 people held an active pilot certificate at the end of 2025, +38,749 on the year. Pilot Census tracks who they are and where they are — and, on the other side of the site, who is trying to hire them.
Active pilots
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FAA count, 31 Dec 2025The data
→Every active certificate the FAA counts, by category and state, with eleven years of history and a monthly read on what is moving. Built from the FAA's own published statistics, with the limits stated.
- Pilots
- 887,519
- States
- 50
- Years
- 11
The jobs
→Where aviation is actually short of people. Every other job board shows you openings; this one starts from the supply side — how many instructors, mechanics and commercial pilots each state has against the demand on them.
- New Mexico
- 4.1
- Arkansas
- 3.7
- Massachusetts
- 3.7
students per instructor