NPI Type 1 vs. Type 2: What's the Difference?
September 02, 2026
National Provider Identifiers (NPIs) are divided into two entity types: Type 1 for individual health care providers and Type 2 for organization health care providers. Understanding the difference is important because an individual provider and the organization where that provider works may each have a separate NPI.
For example, a physician may have a Type 1 NPI that identifies the physician individually, while the group practice or other organization employing the physician may have a Type 2 NPI.
If you're new to NPIs, start with our complete guide to National Provider Identifiers for an overview of what an NPI is and how it is used in health care transactions.
What Is a Type 1 NPI?
A Type 1 NPI is assigned to a health care provider who is an individual person.
Examples of individual health care providers can include:
- Physicians
- Dentists
- Nurse practitioners
- Physician assistants
- Pharmacists
- Chiropractors
- Optometrists
- Physical therapists
- Clinical social workers
A Type 1 NPI identifies the individual provider rather than the practice, group or other organization with which the provider may be associated.
What Is a Type 2 NPI?
A Type 2 NPI is assigned to a health care provider that is an organization rather than an individual person.
Examples of organization health care providers can include:
- Hospitals
- Group practices
- Clinics
- Laboratories
- Pharmacies
- Nursing homes
- Home health agencies
- Ambulance companies
- Durable medical equipment suppliers
An organization can range from a small practice to a large health care system with many providers and locations. The size of the organization does not determine whether its NPI is Type 2.
NPI Type 1 vs. Type 2 at a Glance
| Type 1 NPI | Type 2 NPI | |
|---|---|---|
| Identifies | An individual health care provider | A health care organization |
| Examples | Physician, dentist, nurse practitioner, physical therapist | Hospital, group practice, clinic, laboratory, pharmacy |
| Assigned To | The individual | The organization or eligible organizational subpart |
| Subparts | Cannot have subparts | May have subparts that obtain separate NPIs |
Can a Provider Have Both a Type 1 and Type 2 NPI?
An individual provider may be associated with both a Type 1 and Type 2 NPI, but the two NPIs identify different entities.
For example, suppose a physician owns an incorporated medical practice:
Type 1 NPI identifies the physician as an individual health care provider.
Type 2 NPI identifies the health care organization.
The fact that the physician owns the organization does not make the two NPIs interchangeable. One identifies the individual and the other identifies the organization.
This distinction becomes especially important when NPIs are reported on health care claims because different provider roles may require identification of the individual provider, the organization or both.
Is a Sole Proprietor Type 1 or Type 2?
A health care provider who is a sole proprietor is considered an individual for NPI purposes and receives a Type 1 NPI.
This is an important distinction because having an Employer Identification Number (EIN), employees or multiple office locations does not by itself turn a sole proprietor into an organization for NPI enumeration purposes.
A sole proprietor is eligible for a single Type 1 NPI and cannot have organizational subparts.
What About an Incorporated Individual Provider?
An individual health care provider who forms a corporation or other eligible health care organization may need an NPI for the individual and another NPI for the organization.
In that situation:
- The individual provider is identified by a Type 1 NPI.
- The organization is identified by a Type 2 NPI.
This is one reason searching for a provider by name can sometimes return information associated with both an individual provider and a health care organization.
What Is an NPI Organization Subpart?
Some organization health care providers contain components or business units that function somewhat independently from the parent organization. For NPI purposes, these components may be considered organization subparts.
A subpart might:
- Provide a different type of health care service.
- Operate at the same or a different location from the parent organization.
- Conduct its own HIPAA standard transactions.
- Need a unique identifier to meet applicable billing or regulatory requirements.
Depending on the circumstances, an organization may determine that a subpart should obtain its own Type 2 NPI.
Because subpart determination can involve organizational structure and program-specific requirements, organizations should follow current CMS guidance and applicable payer or program requirements when determining which entities or subparts require separate NPIs.
How Do Type 1 and Type 2 NPIs Appear on Health Care Claims?
A professional health care claim can contain NPIs for multiple providers or organizations. The appropriate NPI depends on the provider role being reported and the circumstances of the claim.
For example, a claim might identify:
- A health care organization as the billing provider.
- An individual practitioner as the rendering provider.
- Another individual practitioner as a referring, ordering or supervising provider, when applicable.
However, Type 1 should not automatically be interpreted as "rendering provider," and Type 2 should not automatically be interpreted as "billing provider." The NPI entity type identifies whether the NPI belongs to an individual or an organization; the provider's role on a particular claim is a separate concept.
This distinction is important when reviewing both the CMS-1500 claim form and its electronic ANSI X12 837P counterpart.
How Can I Tell Whether an NPI Is Type 1 or Type 2?
You cannot determine the entity type by looking at the 10 digits of the NPI itself. An NPI is an intelligence-free identifier, meaning the number does not encode whether the provider is an individual or organization.
Instead, look up the NPI and review the provider information associated with the number.
Check an NPI's Entity Type
Use the Eclaims NPI Lookup to search available provider information and determine whether an NPI is associated with an individual or organization.
You can search using an NPI number, provider name, organization name, city, state and other available criteria.
Type 1 and Type 2 NPIs Are Not Interchangeable
The most important difference between Type 1 and Type 2 NPIs is what entity the NPI identifies.
A Type 1 NPI identifies an individual health care provider. A Type 2 NPI identifies a health care organization. When both appear in the same billing relationship, each number continues to identify its respective provider or organization.
Understanding this distinction provides the foundation for determining which NPI belongs in different provider roles on a health care claim and for interpreting provider information returned by an NPI search.
Supporting NPI Resources
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